Fifth Third Bancorp Sells 44,444 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

Fifth Third Bancorp trimmed its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 63.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,198 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 44,444 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,105,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in United Parcel Service by 63.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,126 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,529,000 after purchasing an additional 4,723 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 2nd quarter valued at $277,000. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 58.4% in the 2nd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 7,311 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $757,000 after buying an additional 2,695 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 96.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 785 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 3,924 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $396,000 after acquiring an additional 139 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 recent research reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded United Parcel Service from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “peer perform” rating on shares of United Parcel Service in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on United Parcel Service from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on United Parcel Service from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $113.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Parcel Service

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 25,014 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.15, for a total transaction of $2,655,236.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.6%

United Parcel Service stock opened at $116.20 on Thursday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $82.00 and a 12 month high of $123.70. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The firm has a market cap of $98.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.71, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.11.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The transportation company reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.18. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 38.30% and a net margin of 6.28%.The company had revenue of $24.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.91 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.75 earnings per share. United Parcel Service’s revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.6%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

United Parcel Service Profile

United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) is a global package delivery and supply chain management company that provides a broad range of transportation, logistics and e-commerce services. Its core business centers on small-package delivery and last-mile distribution for business and individual customers, supported by a network of ground transportation, air cargo operations (UPS Airlines) and sorting facilities. In addition to parcel delivery, UPS offers freight transportation, contract logistics, warehousing, customs brokerage and reverse-logistics solutions designed to support domestic and international commerce.

The company traces its roots to 1907 when it began as a small messenger service in the United States and later evolved into the United Parcel Service.