United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Friday morning.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on UPS. Bank of America decreased their price target on United Parcel Service from $133.00 to $129.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $128.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Wolfe Research dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $133.00 to $113.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.70.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 2.3 %

NYSE UPS opened at $96.34 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. United Parcel Service has a one year low of $90.55 and a one year high of $153.42. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $110.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.25, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that United Parcel Service will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.81%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.04%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in United Parcel Service by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $113,064,000 after acquiring an additional 33,989 shares during the period. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC bought a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the fourth quarter worth $461,000. Synovus Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 8.6% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,934,000 after purchasing an additional 6,941 shares in the last quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service in the fourth quarter worth about $1,305,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in United Parcel Service by 27.2% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 131,623 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $16,304,000 after buying an additional 28,108 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

About United Parcel Service

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.