United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by Ballentine Partners LLC

Ballentine Partners LLC trimmed its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,299 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,183 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,551,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 4.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $113,064,000 after purchasing an additional 33,989 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 8.6% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,934,000 after purchasing an additional 6,941 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares in the last quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth $1,305,000. Finally, Cohen Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 26.4% during the third quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,357 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,503,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at United Parcel Service

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the business’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 owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on UPS. Oppenheimer upped their price target on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Bank of America upgraded 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, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on United Parcel Service from $165.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wolfe Research upgraded United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $159.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued 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 $151.10.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 2.5 %

UPS opened at $132.96 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $128.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $130.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a one year low of $121.56 and a one year high of $161.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.00.

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

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.90%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.49%.

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.