United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS Stock Position Lowered by Griffin Asset Management Inc.

Griffin Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 24,534 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,015 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,476,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. purchased a new stake in United Parcel Service in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Citizens National Bank Trust Department lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 525.0% in the 1st quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 250 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 68.9% in the 1st quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 282 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in United Parcel Service in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Flaharty Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in United Parcel Service in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on UPS. Galvan Research cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $88.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $124.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $118.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of United Parcel Service to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.38.

Insider Activity

In other United Parcel Service news, CEO Carol B. Tome bought 11,682 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $85.67 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,796.94. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 24,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,117,591.06. The trade was a 89.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director William R. Johnson purchased 5,000 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $86.50 per share, for a total transaction of $432,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 10,160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $878,840. This represents a 96.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have acquired 17,182 shares of company stock worth $1,477,382. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS opened at $82.97 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $70.32 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.10. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a one year low of $82.00 and a one year high of $145.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.32. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $85.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.22.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.01). United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.61% and a net margin of 6.34%.The company had revenue of $21.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.79 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 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, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 97.62%.

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.