United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by New Mexico Educational Retirement Board

New Mexico Educational Retirement Board decreased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 34,962 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 700 shares during the period. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $4,409,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cigna Investments Inc. New increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New now owns 7,508 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,024,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Pacific Sage Partners LLC increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Pacific Sage Partners LLC now owns 1,677 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.6% in the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tradewinds LLC. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tradewinds LLC. now owns 4,487 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $612,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:UPS opened at $116.37 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $124.72 and a 200-day moving average of $128.86. The firm has a market cap of $99.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.98. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $109.40 and a twelve month high of $158.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.64%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 96.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James dropped their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.73.

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.