Brokerages Set FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) Target Price at $289.56

Shares of FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-six research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and eighteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $301.07.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of FedEx from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of FedEx from $322.00 to $305.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. BNP Paribas reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of FedEx in a research note on Wednesday. Melius Research upgraded shares of FedEx from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $310.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of FedEx from $293.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd.

FedEx Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of FDX stock opened at $287.88 on Thursday. FedEx has a 1 year low of $213.80 and a 1 year high of $291.27. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $248.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $252.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The shipping service provider reported $3.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.49 by $0.37. FedEx had a net margin of 5.02% and a return on equity of 16.60%. The firm had revenue of $21.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that FedEx will post 17.61 EPS for the current year.

FedEx announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the shipping service provider to repurchase up to 7.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

FedEx Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th will be paid a $1.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 8th. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. FedEx’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Guy M. Erwin II sold 2,749 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.11, for a total transaction of $794,763.39. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,507.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Guy M. Erwin II sold 2,749 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.11, for a total transaction of $794,763.39. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,507.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 6,145 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.02, for a total value of $1,769,882.90. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,265,277.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 8.73% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FedEx

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FDX. Sentry LLC bought a new position in shares of FedEx during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,811,748,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of FedEx during the 4th quarter worth approximately $700,291,000. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC bought a new position in shares of FedEx during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $496,611,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of FedEx by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,063,938 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $1,076,619,000 after acquiring an additional 916,555 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of FedEx by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 6,667,462 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $1,686,738,000 after acquiring an additional 880,894 shares in the last quarter. 84.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About FedEx

FedEx Corporation provides transportation, e-commerce, and business services in the United States and internationally. It operates through FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, and FedEx Services segments. The FedEx Express segment offers express transportation, small-package ground delivery, and freight transportation services; and time-critical transportation services.