WealthShield Partners LLC Lowers Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

WealthShield Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 23.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 2,674 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 839 shares during the period. WealthShield Partners LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $337,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 39.7% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 108,360 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $14,793,000 after buying an additional 30,815 shares during the period. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 8,181 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,115,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in United Parcel Service during the third quarter valued at about $543,000. Old Port Advisors grew its stake in United Parcel Service by 119.4% in the third quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 22,526 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,071,000 after purchasing an additional 12,259 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1,408.3% in the third quarter. Strategic Wealth Investment Group LLC now owns 32,776 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,368,000 after purchasing an additional 30,603 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on UPS. Argus upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Raymond James lowered their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Baird R W lowered shares of United Parcel Service from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $158.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE:UPS opened at $116.00 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $122.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.32. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $109.40 and a 1-year high of $158.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.16, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.47 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.66%. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.04%.

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.