United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS Shares Acquired by National Pension Service

National Pension Service boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,075,810 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 159,838 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $205,900,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UPS. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 63.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,126 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,529,000 after purchasing an additional 4,723 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service during the 2nd quarter valued at $277,000. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service during the 2nd quarter valued at $848,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 342,866 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,609,000 after purchasing an additional 9,124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 154.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 104,819 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $10,580,000 after purchasing an additional 63,629 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE UPS opened at $106.85 on Friday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $82.00 and a 12 month high of $122.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The company has a market capitalization of $90.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.06. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $101.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $103.08.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.05. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 5.94% and a return on equity of 35.95%. The firm had revenue of $21.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on UPS. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Evercore reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $111.50.

United Parcel Service Company Profile

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.