Central Bank & Trust Co. Trims Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Central Bank & Trust Co. lessened its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 29.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,989 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,673 shares during the period. Central Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $503,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of UPS. IFS Advisors LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 232.3% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 397.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 214 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 408.2% in the 3rd quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 249 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 720.0% during the 3rd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in United Parcel Service in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of United Parcel Service in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Oppenheimer increased their price target on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. StockNews.com raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.10.

Insider Activity at United Parcel Service

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. This trade represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

United Parcel Service Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE UPS opened at $129.77 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $128.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.87. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12-month low of $121.56 and a 12-month high of $161.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The stock has a market cap of $110.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.00.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.13. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.38% and a net margin of 6.25%. The firm had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.57 earnings per share. United Parcel Service’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.02%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is presently 98.49%.

United Parcel Service 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.