Investment House LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Investment House LLC lowered its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 35.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 45,200 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 24,357 shares during the quarter. Investment House LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $7,107,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC raised its position in United Parcel Service by 69.5% during the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 239 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on UPS. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $165.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, February 16th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and set a $154.00 target price on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $183.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $165.23.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Eva C. Boratto purchased 1,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $142.30 per share, with a total value of $199,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,220. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

UPS traded up $0.96 on Monday, hitting $148.55. 1,335,969 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,292,653. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $133.68 and a fifty-two week high of $192.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $149.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $150.90. The stock has a market cap of $126.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.05.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 37.42%. The company had revenue of $21.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.23 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is a boost from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.39%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 94.49%.

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.