Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS)

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders purchased 34,148 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 33% compared to the average daily volume of 25,672 call options.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 1.8%

United Parcel Service stock traded up $1.97 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $111.91. 1,557,040 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,020,810. The company has a market cap of $95.12 billion, a PE ratio of 18.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.05. United Parcel Service has a fifty-two week low of $82.00 and a fifty-two week high of $122.41. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $105.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $105.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $21.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.99 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 5.94% and a return on equity of 35.95%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.49 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that United Parcel Service will post 7.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is presently 106.15%.

Key United Parcel Service News

Here are the key news stories impacting United Parcel Service this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup raised its price target on UPS to $132 from $127 and reiterated a Buy rating, signaling confidence that the stock still has meaningful upside from current levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Stephens upgraded UPS to Strong Buy, adding to the improving analyst sentiment around the company.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted UPS’s strong earnings-surprise history and said the company has the ingredients for another quarterly beat, which could support the shares ahead of results. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Another Zacks piece said UPS is attracting investor attention, suggesting the stock is seeing elevated interest from market participants. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: A FreightWaves report said the U.S. Postal Service is shifting more long-distance mail to air to avoid penalties tied to a UPS volume contract. While this underscores UPS’s negotiating leverage, it also highlights distortions in postal operations rather than a direct earnings catalyst. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Some recent commentary remains cautious, with one analyst downgrading UPS to Hold and warning of muted revenue growth and bottom-line pressure into FY2026.
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish coverage also continues to question dividend sustainability and margins, citing competition from Amazon logistics and weak free cash flow.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,496,420 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $6,794,160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,218,432 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,092,627 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,183,268,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029,377 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 27,142,759 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,692,290,000 after buying an additional 856,125 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,154,091 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,703,291,000 after buying an additional 240,253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 72.9% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,818,314 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,370,639,000 after buying an additional 5,826,824 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on UPS. Weiss Ratings downgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Stephens raised shares of United Parcel Service to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $111.10.

United Parcel Service Company 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.