Keating Investment Counselors Inc. Buys 11,729 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

Keating Investment Counselors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 52.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,235 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,729 shares during the period. United Parcel Service makes up about 0.8% of Keating Investment Counselors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Keating Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,860,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 66,905,138 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,753,405,000 after buying an additional 768,912 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 30,774,530 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,106,381,000 after acquiring an additional 444,384 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.0% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 25,792,139 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,603,459,000 after acquiring an additional 746,667 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,623,834 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,675,733,000 after acquiring an additional 762,407 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in United Parcel Service in the second quarter valued at about $851,842,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Trading Down 1.3%

UPS opened at $106.62 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $98.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.07. The firm has a market cap of $90.46 billion, a PE ratio of 16.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.11. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $82.00 and a twelve month high of $136.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.30.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The transportation company reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.43. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.15% and a return on equity of 40.07%. The company had revenue of $21.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.76 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.2%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on UPS. BNP Paribas Exane lowered United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $114.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Wolfe Research reissued a “peer perform” rating on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $122.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $111.42.

About United Parcel Service

United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) is a global package delivery and supply chain management company that provides a broad range of transportation, logistics and e-commerce services. Its core business centers on small-package delivery and last-mile distribution for business and individual customers, supported by a network of ground transportation, air cargo operations (UPS Airlines) and sorting facilities. In addition to parcel delivery, UPS offers freight transportation, contract logistics, warehousing, customs brokerage and reverse-logistics solutions designed to support domestic and international commerce.

The company traces its roots to 1907 when it began as a small messenger service in the United States and later evolved into the United Parcel Service.