Hilltop National Bank Increases Stock Holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Hilltop National Bank increased its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 27.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 408 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $56,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 67,218,714 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $10,568,798,000 after purchasing an additional 178,394 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake 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 in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 11.4% in the fourth 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. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,128,322,000. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 6,671,306 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $991,556,000 after acquiring an additional 406,248 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS stock traded down $1.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $123.35. The stock had a trading volume of 4,733,022 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,290,136. 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 has a 50-day simple moving average of $135.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $144.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $105.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.98. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.25 and a twelve month high of $184.33.

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

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.29%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on UPS shares. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $160.00 to $158.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $157.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $134.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on United Parcel Service from $175.00 to $159.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $154.95.

Insider Activity at United Parcel Service

In related news, Director William R. Johnson bought 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $128.61 per share, for a total transaction of $643,050.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $663,627.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.