Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. Cuts Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. lessened its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 43.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,771 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 5,204 shares during the period. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,065,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. RB Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.1% in the first quarter. RB Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $577,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the first quarter worth about $1,162,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 10.0% in the first quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 1,233 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. First Western Trust Bank purchased a new stake in United Parcel Service in the first quarter worth about $515,000. Finally, Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the first quarter valued at approximately $701,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Parcel Service news, Director Eva C. Boratto purchased 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $142.30 per share, with a total value of $199,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,220. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Argus downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $175.00 to $147.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $155.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, December 26th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $153.00 price target on shares of United Parcel Service in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.45.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

United Parcel Service stock traded up $2.61 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $146.40. 3,924,062 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,359,674. The business has a fifty day moving average of $151.02 and a 200 day moving average of $152.41. The company has a market capitalization of $124.83 billion, a PE ratio of 18.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.05. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $133.68 and a 1-year high of $197.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $24.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.40 billion. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.46% and a net margin of 7.37%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.62 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.29 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.45%. This is a boost from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.70%.

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.