United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Stock Holdings Lessened by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 881,544 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 9,362 shares during the period. United Parcel Service comprises approximately 4.2% of Merit Financial Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Merit Financial Group LLC owned approximately 0.10% of United Parcel Service worth $138,605,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UPS. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 17,530 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,756,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 24.2% in the 4th quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 334 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Gleason Group Inc. lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 6,351 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $999,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 15,085 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,351,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dfpg Investments LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Dfpg Investments LLC now owns 25,270 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,981,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of UPS traded down $0.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $146.43. 1,998,734 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,217,563. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a market cap of $124.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $149.44 and its 200-day moving average is $150.74. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $133.68 and a fifty-two week high of $192.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $21.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.84 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.60% and a return on equity of 37.42%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.45%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on UPS. Robert W. Baird upgraded United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $154.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Susquehanna raised their target price on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Redburn Atlantic raised United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, UBS Group raised United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $165.23.

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.