United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Shares Up 0.5% – Time to Buy?

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) traded up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $111.66 and last traded at $111.52. 752,158 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 4,463,004 shares. The stock had previously closed at $111.01.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on UPS. Wolfe Research raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on United Parcel Service from $128.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Susquehanna reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $119.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.57.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $118.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.66 billion, a PE ratio of 16.22, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.13% and a net margin of 6.35%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.47 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.98%. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 97.04%.

Institutional Trading of United Parcel Service

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,136,394 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $8,213,699,000 after purchasing an additional 370,705 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,035,313,000 after buying an additional 613,409 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,933,674,000 after buying an additional 1,337,058 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,704,334 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,979,695,000 after buying an additional 414,710 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 10,979,909 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,384,567,000 after acquiring an additional 1,484,452 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

About United Parcel Service

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.