MRA Advisory Group Sells 1,156 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

MRA Advisory Group lowered its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 25.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,385 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,156 shares during the period. MRA Advisory Group’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $427,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,994,853,000 after purchasing an additional 14,539,321 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 284.8% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,569,831 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $351,681,000 after buying an additional 1,901,914 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in United Parcel Service by 833.4% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $282,783,000 after acquiring an additional 1,851,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew 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 worth $232,959,000 after acquiring an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,320,921 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on UPS shares. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on United Parcel Service from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on United Parcel Service from $165.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $163.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.10.

Insider Transactions at United Parcel Service

In other United Parcel Service news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UPS opened at $125.14 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The company has a market capitalization of $106.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.00. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $121.56 and a 12 month high of $161.35. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $129.38 and a 200-day moving average of $131.08.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.10 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is presently 98.49%.

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.