Sharp Financial Services LLC Sells 615 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Sharp Financial Services LLC decreased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 16.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,015 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 615 shares during the quarter. Sharp Financial Services LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of UPS. Cigna Investments Inc. New raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.0% during the third quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New now owns 7,508 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,024,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.6% during the third quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 12,596 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,717,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Gleason Group Inc. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.2% during the third quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 6,576 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $897,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Tradewinds LLC. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.8% during the third quarter. Tradewinds LLC. now owns 4,487 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $612,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OLD Second National Bank of Aurora grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.2% during the third quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 7,177 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $979,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Down 0.2 %

UPS opened at $132.59 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $113.15 billion, a PE ratio of 20.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $121.56 and a twelve month high of $161.35. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $128.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $130.81.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $22.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.10 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. United Parcel Service’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.57 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.92%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 98.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $159.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $163.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.38.

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.