ProVise Management Group LLC Purchases 4,339 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

ProVise Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 32.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,886 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,339 shares during the quarter. ProVise Management Group LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,812,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 17,530 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,756,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. First Financial Corp IN lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 24.2% during the fourth quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 334 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Gleason Group Inc. boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 6,351 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $999,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC grew its position in United Parcel Service by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 15,085 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,351,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Dfpg Investments LLC raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Dfpg Investments LLC now owns 25,270 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,981,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UPS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, February 16th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $183.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $157.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Argus cut shares of United Parcel Service from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $165.23.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UPS traded down $0.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $138.66. The stock had a trading volume of 2,995,428 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,760,187. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $147.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $150.79. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1 year low of $133.68 and a 1 year high of $192.98. The company has a market cap of $118.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.42% and a net margin of 6.60%. The firm had revenue of $21.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.20 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.70%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 94.49%.

About United Parcel Service

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.