United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Purchased by Empirical Asset Management LLC

Empirical Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 12,036 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,518,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Central Valley Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Central Valley Advisors LLC now owns 3,578 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,991 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,395,000 after acquiring an additional 634 shares during the period. Beech Hill Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Beech Hill Advisors Inc. now owns 20,736 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,615,000 after acquiring an additional 1,738 shares in the last quarter. IFS Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 232.3% in the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 68.1% in the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,937 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,631,000 after purchasing an additional 5,241 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on UPS. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $165.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.10.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

NYSE:UPS opened at $129.77 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $110.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $129.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $130.97. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $121.56 and a fifty-two week high of $161.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.13. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.38% and a net margin of 6.25%. The business had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.10 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.49 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.02%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Parcel Service

In other United Parcel Service news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. This trade represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

United Parcel Service 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.