Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 30,462 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lowered its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 565,952 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 30,462 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $71,367,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPS. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,767,781 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $222,917,000 after purchasing an additional 66,917 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 40.5% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 4,242 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $535,000 after buying an additional 1,223 shares in the last quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 77.8% during the 4th quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,568 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $828,000 after buying an additional 2,874 shares during the period. Generation Capital Management LLC bought a new position in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $367,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 22.4% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 3,026 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $382,000 after acquiring an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Loop Capital dropped their price target on United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $128.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Wolfe Research lowered their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $133.00 to $113.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on United Parcel Service from $149.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $129.70.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 2.3 %

United Parcel Service stock opened at $96.34 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $122.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.25, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. 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, Inc. has a 52 week low of $90.55 and a 52 week high of $153.42.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. Analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.81%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.04%.

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.