Core Alternative Capital Sells 204 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Core Alternative Capital lessened its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,806 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 204 shares during the period. Core Alternative Capital’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $354,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of UPS. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,994,853,000 after acquiring an additional 14,539,321 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 833.4% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $282,783,000 after purchasing an additional 1,851,900 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,927,607 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,989,609,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320,921 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 5,136.2% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,079,964 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $147,242,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059,339 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UPS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $158.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Argus upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. 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 report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

NYSE:UPS opened at $114.18 on Tuesday. 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 business’s 50-day simple moving average is $125.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $129.25. The stock has a market cap of $97.43 billion, a PE ratio of 16.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.98. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $109.40 and a 52 week high of $158.95.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 period in the previous year, the business earned $2.47 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 96.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Parcel Service

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at 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.