Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 5,690 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 91,416 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 5,690 shares during the quarter. United Parcel Service makes up about 1.9% of Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $12,510,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. United Services Automobile Association boosted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 235.3% during the 4th quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 237,333 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $37,316,000 after purchasing an additional 166,557 shares during the last quarter. Natixis bought a new position in United Parcel Service during the first quarter valued at approximately $121,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 20.2% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 62,360 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,805,000 after buying an additional 10,467 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,607,055 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,510,517,000 after buying an additional 980,317 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Partners Group LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 23.9% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC now owns 26,319 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,602,000 after acquiring an additional 5,069 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other United Parcel Service news, Director William R. Johnson acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $128.61 per share, with a total value of $643,050.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,160 shares in the company, valued at $663,627.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UPS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $175.00 to $159.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $145.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $134.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.68.

United Parcel Service Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of UPS opened at $127.24 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.44, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $130.88 and a 200 day moving average of $139.93. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.12 and a 1-year high of $163.82.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $21.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.54 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.43 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 94.49%.

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.