Woodward Diversified Capital LLC Acquires Shares of 2,066 United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

Woodward Diversified Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,066 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 63.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,126 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,529,000 after acquiring an additional 4,723 shares in the last quarter. HBW Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 31.3% during the first quarter. HBW Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,448 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $269,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. Johnson & White Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in United Parcel Service by 18.8% in the first quarter. Johnson & White Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,524 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co grew its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.4% in the first quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 9,766 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HF Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 27.9% in the first quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 13,236 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,456,000 after buying an additional 2,886 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Parcel Service

In other United Parcel Service news, CEO Carol B. Tome purchased 11,682 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $85.67 per share, with a total value of $1,000,796.94. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 24,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,117,591.06. This trade represents a 89.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William R. Johnson acquired 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were bought at an average price of $86.50 per share, for a total transaction of $432,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 10,160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $878,840. This represents a 96.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 17,182 shares of company stock valued at $1,477,382 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UPS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, September 20th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on United Parcel Service from $127.00 to $114.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $98.00 to $91.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Wolfe Research reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $113.00 to $112.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $103.00 to $97.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $110.41.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 1.5%

United Parcel Service stock opened at $85.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a one year low of $82.00 and a one year high of $145.01. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.01). United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.34% and a return on equity of 39.61%. The firm had revenue of $21.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.79 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were given a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.62%.

About United Parcel Service

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.