RIA Advisory Group LLC Acquires 15,925 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

RIA Advisory Group LLC grew its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 798.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,919 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,925 shares during the quarter. United Parcel Service accounts for about 0.8% of RIA Advisory Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. RIA Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,817,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. MWA Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,125,000. Chesapeake Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 7,886 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,229,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 387,381 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $60,908,000 after buying an additional 44,721 shares during the period. CapWealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. CapWealth Advisors LLC now owns 58,184 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,148,000 after buying an additional 686 shares during the period. Finally, Telos Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 74,337 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,587,000 after buying an additional 740 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Parcel Service news, Director Eva C. Boratto purchased 1,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $142.30 per share, with a total value of $199,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,400 shares in the company, valued at $199,220. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of United Parcel Service stock traded up $0.03 during trading on Friday, reaching $142.77. The stock had a trading volume of 5,066,674 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,319,552. The company has a market capitalization of $121.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $149.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $151.28. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $133.68 and a 52 week high of $197.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $24.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.40 billion. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.46% and a net margin of 7.37%. United Parcel Service’s quarterly revenue was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.62 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.57%. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is currently 83.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on UPS. Raymond James cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $178.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. TheStreet raised United Parcel Service from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on United Parcel Service from $183.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on United Parcel Service from $147.00 to $140.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $165.61.

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.