United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by Cascade Financial Partners LLC

Cascade Financial Partners LLC lowered its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 11.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,291 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 418 shares during the period. Cascade Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $415,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 397.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 214 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 232.3% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on UPS. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wolfe Research raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $119.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.00.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

NYSE UPS opened at $116.35 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $121.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $127.64. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.40 and a 52-week high of $158.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market cap of $99.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.21, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94.

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 the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. This is a boost from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.64%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.04%.

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.