United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by Bleakley Financial Group LLC

Bleakley Financial Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 45.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 33,983 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 28,595 shares during the quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $4,285,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. NovaPoint Capital LLC raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. NovaPoint Capital LLC now owns 1,874 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $236,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. now owns 23,527 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,967,000 after purchasing an additional 1,520 shares during the period. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,409 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth $461,000. Finally, Tyche Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 67.8% in the 4th quarter. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,247 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $914,000 after buying an additional 2,927 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of United Parcel Service stock opened at $113.47 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $126.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $129.57. The company has a market capitalization of $96.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. 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 issued 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 return on equity of 39.13% and a net margin of 6.35%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.47 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.78%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 96.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on UPS. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com raised United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.73.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was 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 owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.