FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) Stake Boosted by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC raised its position in shares of FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) by 68.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 139,538 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock after buying an additional 56,803 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC’s holdings in FedEx were worth $39,256,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake in FedEx by 144.4% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 88 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Peoples Financial Services CORP. acquired a new stake in shares of FedEx in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in shares of FedEx during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in FedEx during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in FedEx in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. 84.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FedEx Stock Down 2.8 %

FDX opened at $209.90 on Monday. FedEx Co. has a 1-year low of $203.43 and a 1-year high of $313.84. The business has a 50 day moving average of $252.45 and a 200-day moving average of $268.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The shipping service provider reported $4.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.56 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $22.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.96 billion. FedEx had a return on equity of 15.59% and a net margin of 4.45%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.86 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that FedEx Co. will post 19.14 earnings per share for the current year.

FedEx Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.63%. FedEx’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FDX. Bank of America dropped their target price on FedEx from $295.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of FedEx in a research note on Friday, March 21st. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of FedEx from $350.00 to $331.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of FedEx from $323.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on FedEx in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $337.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, FedEx presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $302.71.

Insider Transactions at FedEx

In other FedEx news, EVP John W. Dietrich purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $273.98 per share, with a total value of $273,980.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,484,176.66. This represents a 12.40 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Richard W. Smith sold 2,576 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.93, for a total transaction of $713,371.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,984,589.98. The trade was a 2.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,711 shares of company stock valued at $3,312,693. 8.87% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About FedEx

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.