Savant Capital LLC Sells 733 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Savant Capital LLC reduced its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 56,803 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 733 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $7,163,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Burns Matteson Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth $328,000. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 65.7% during the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,613 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $582,000 after purchasing an additional 1,829 shares during the period. Stiles Financial Services Inc increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 16.1% during the 4th quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 11,985 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,663 shares during the period. HTLF Bank increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. HTLF Bank now owns 41,845 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $5,277,000 after purchasing an additional 782 shares during the period. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth $77,000. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group reduced their price objective on United Parcel Service from $170.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Baird R W downgraded United Parcel Service from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird downgraded United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $160.00 to $130.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS opened at $114.18 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $125.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $129.25. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a one year low of $109.40 and a one year high of $158.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market cap of $97.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company posted $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.99 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.75%. This is a boost from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is currently 97.04%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.13% 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.