Horizon Investments LLC Sells 2,800 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Horizon Investments LLC cut its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 16.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,449 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 2,800 shares during the quarter. Horizon Investments LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,822,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UPS. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter valued at about $393,680,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 833.4% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $282,783,000 after acquiring an additional 1,851,900 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 77.7% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $397,329,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378,136 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,933,674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,337,058 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 10,040,863 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,272,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277,328 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE UPS opened at $118.85 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.58, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $120.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.25. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.40 and a 52-week high of $158.95.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the business earned $2.47 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.64 dividend. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.52%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 97.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Loop Capital reduced their target price on United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.09.

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.