EntryPoint Capital LLC Buys 689 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 251.5% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 963 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 689 shares during the quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $143,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 280,472 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $44,099,000 after acquiring an additional 43,146 shares during the period. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $791,000. Keystone Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $201,000. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,483 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,177,000 after acquiring an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Monarch Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Monarch Capital Management Inc. now owns 18,662 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,934,000 after acquiring an additional 1,642 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 1.9 %

UPS stock traded up $2.37 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $129.45. The stock had a trading volume of 3,051,884 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,202,939. The firm has a market cap of $110.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.98. The business has a 50-day moving average of $138.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $145.91. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52-week low of $124.80 and a 52-week high of $189.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by ($0.20). United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 35.27% and a net margin of 5.87%. The company had revenue of $21.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.54 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.04%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is currently 94.49%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William R. Johnson bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were bought at an average price of $128.61 per share, with a total value of $643,050.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,160 shares in the company, valued at $663,627.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. HSBC upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $183.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $170.00 to $151.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $147.00 to $140.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded United Parcel Service to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $154.95.

United Parcel Service 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.