United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by Loudon Investment Management LLC

Loudon Investment Management LLC lowered its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 11,156 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,049 shares during the quarter. Loudon Investment Management LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in United Parcel Service in the fourth quarter worth approximately $393,680,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 833.4% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $282,783,000 after acquiring an additional 1,851,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 77.7% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $397,329,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378,136 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,933,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,337,058 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 10,040,863 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,272,600,000 after acquiring an additional 1,277,328 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS opened at $117.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s fifty day moving average is $120.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.11. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1 year low of $109.40 and a 1 year high of $158.95.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced 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 previous year, the company posted $2.47 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.64 dividend. This is a boost from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.61%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is currently 97.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on UPS shares. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.09.

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.