United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Given New $82.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) had its price target lowered by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $82.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “underweight” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would indicate a potential downside of 28.73% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $165.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.67.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE UPS opened at $115.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.40, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.00. United Parcel Service has a 1-year low of $109.62 and a 1-year high of $158.95. The business’s 50 day moving average is $128.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $130.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.38% and a net margin of 6.25%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.47 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that United Parcel Service will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,994,853,000 after purchasing an additional 14,539,321 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 833.4% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $282,783,000 after buying an additional 1,851,900 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $232,959,000 after buying an additional 1,620,091 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,320,921 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 5,136.2% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,079,964 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $147,242,000 after acquiring an additional 1,059,339 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

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.