United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC

Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC reduced its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 14,441 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 530 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in United Parcel Service by 4.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $113,064,000 after purchasing an additional 33,989 shares during the last quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at $461,000. Synovus Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,934,000 after buying an additional 6,941 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $232,959,000 after buying an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. Finally, HF Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter worth $1,305,000. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Evercore ISI upped their price target on United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 0.3 %

UPS opened at $114.49 on Wednesday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12-month low of $109.40 and a 12-month high of $158.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.70 billion, a PE ratio of 16.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $125.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $129.16.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect 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 paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.73%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 96.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

United Parcel Service Company 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.