Kestra Advisory Services LLC Raises Stock Holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Kestra Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 21.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 125,985 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,612 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $18,725,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,218,714 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $10,568,798,000 after acquiring an additional 178,394 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 87.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,152,900 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,854,180,000 after purchasing an additional 8,475,698 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in United Parcel Service by 15,631.2% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,502,261 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,280,190,000 after buying an additional 14,410,073 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,607,055 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,510,517,000 after buying an additional 980,317 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,128,322,000. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on UPS. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $170.00 to $151.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on United Parcel Service from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Susquehanna reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $160.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on United Parcel Service from $157.00 to $145.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $154.95.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

NYSE UPS traded up $1.75 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $128.83. 7,271,324 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,001,099. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $137.64 and its 200-day moving average is $145.59. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52-week low of $124.80 and a 52-week high of $189.65. The company has a market capitalization of $110.22 billion, a PE ratio of 18.67, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.99 by ($0.20). The company had revenue of $21.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 5.87% and a return on equity of 35.27%. United Parcel Service’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.54 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 30th. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 10th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is currently 94.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director William R. Johnson purchased 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $128.61 per share, with a total value of $643,050.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,160 shares in the company, valued at approximately $663,627.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.