United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Purchased by Emerald Advisors LLC

Emerald Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,230 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 467 shares during the period. Emerald Advisors LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $786,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 232.3% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 397.7% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 214 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC boosted its position in United Parcel Service by 408.2% in the 3rd quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 249 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 720.0% in the third quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the third quarter worth $36,000. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.73.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

UPS stock opened at $114.96 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $123.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.48. The firm has a market cap of $98.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.01, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.98. 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 1 year low of $109.40 and a 1 year high of $158.95.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $2.47 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.71%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 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.