United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Holdings Decreased by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC lowered its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 418,758 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 25,037 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $53,151,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,075,393,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at $393,680,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 10,979,909 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,384,567,000 after purchasing an additional 1,484,452 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 77.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $397,329,000 after buying an additional 1,378,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted 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 valued at $2,933,674,000 after buying an additional 1,337,058 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on UPS. Susquehanna lowered their target price on United Parcel Service from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $119.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, United Parcel Service presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.18.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

UPS stock opened at $95.56 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $81.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.14, a P/E/G 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. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $115.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.31. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $93.23 and a 52 week high of $153.42.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company posted $2.47 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $1.64 dividend. 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 yield of 6.86%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. 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.