United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Trading Down 0.3% – What’s Next?

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s stock price was down 0.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $122.76 and last traded at $123.51. Approximately 884,128 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 1,896,372 shares. The stock had previously closed at $123.87.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on UPS. Oppenheimer raised their price target on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Argus upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $139.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $165.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.10.

United Parcel Service Trading Down 0.1 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $130.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $131.59. The stock has a market cap of $105.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.70, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $22.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.10 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. United Parcel Service’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.57 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.27%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 98.49%.

Insider Activity at United Parcel Service

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UPS. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,035,313,000 after purchasing an additional 613,409 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,927,607 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,989,609,000 after buying an additional 1,320,921 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in United Parcel Service by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,289,624 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,080,170,000 after buying an additional 373,202 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,994,853,000 after buying an additional 14,539,321 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,627,550 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,448,960,000 after acquiring an additional 380,229 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Parcel Service Company Profile

United Parcel Service, Inc, a package delivery company, provides transportation and delivery, distribution, contract logistics, ocean freight, airfreight, customs brokerage, and insurance services. It operates through two segments, U.S. Domestic Package and International Package. The U.S. Domestic Package segment offers time-definite delivery of express letters, documents, small packages, and palletized freight through air and ground services in the United States.