United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Shares Up 0.6% – Should You Buy?

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s share price shot up 0.6% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $116.76 and last traded at $116.37. 5,937,801 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 22% from the average session volume of 7,571,378 shares. The stock had previously closed at $115.64.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on UPS. BMO Capital Markets upgraded United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $158.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Raymond James cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 0.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business’s 50 day moving average is $124.53 and its 200 day moving average is $128.77. The stock has a market cap of $99.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 96.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Parcel Service

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UPS. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,994,853,000 after buying an additional 14,539,321 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $1,075,393,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $393,680,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,851,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in 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 worth $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.