KBC Group NV Acquires 226,608 Shares of FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX)

KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) by 197.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 341,390 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 226,608 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in FedEx were worth $96,043,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in FedEx by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,948 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $533,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its position in FedEx by 3.0% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 1,308 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $360,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of FedEx by 4.0% during the third quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,020 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Buckley Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of FedEx by 1.0% in the third quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,975 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $1,088,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evermay Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of FedEx by 72.7% in the third quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 95 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. 84.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FedEx Stock Up 1.1 %

NYSE:FDX opened at $273.12 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $281.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $283.20. The firm has a market cap of $65.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.20. FedEx Co. has a fifty-two week low of $234.45 and a fifty-two week high of $313.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.23.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The shipping service provider reported $4.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.88 by $0.17. FedEx had a net margin of 4.45% and a return on equity of 15.59%. The company had revenue of $22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.99 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that FedEx Co. will post 19.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FedEx Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. FedEx’s payout ratio is 35.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on FDX shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of FedEx from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Loop Capital upgraded FedEx from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $288.00 to $365.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group increased their price objective on FedEx from $311.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. BNP Paribas raised FedEx from a “strong sell” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on FedEx from $368.00 to $364.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $325.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other FedEx news, Director Amy B. Lane acquired 333 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $276.06 per share, for a total transaction of $91,927.98. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $91,927.98. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John W. Dietrich bought 1,000 shares of FedEx stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $273.98 per share, with a total value of $273,980.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president now owns 9,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,484,176.66. The trade was a 12.40 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 8.87% of the stock is owned by insiders.

FedEx Company Profile

FedEx Corporation provides transportation, e-commerce, and business services in the United States and internationally. It operates through FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, and FedEx Services segments. The FedEx Express segment offers express transportation, small-package ground delivery, and freight transportation services; and time-critical transportation services.