United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Trading 1.7% Higher

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s stock price traded up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $136.75 and last traded at $136.59. 858,077 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 4,260,175 shares. The stock had previously closed at $134.26.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $157.00 to $145.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Barclays dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $145.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $157.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Stephens dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $168.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.68.

United Parcel Service Stock Down 2.2 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $114.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $128.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $138.10.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.99 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $21.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 5.87% and a return on equity of 35.27%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.54 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th were paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 94.49%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William R. Johnson purchased 5,000 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $128.61 per share, with a total value of $643,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $663,627.60. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,218,714 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $10,568,798,000 after acquiring an additional 178,394 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 87.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,152,900 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,854,180,000 after purchasing an additional 8,475,698 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 6,671,306 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $991,556,000 after purchasing an additional 406,248 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,490,712 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $888,254,000 after purchasing an additional 20,426 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,144,372 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $567,157,000 after purchasing an additional 393,434 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About United Parcel Service

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.