FedEx (NYSE:FDX) Cut to Hold at HSBC

HSBC downgraded shares of FedEx (NYSE:FDX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $300.00 price objective on the shipping service provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Raymond James cut their target price on FedEx from $325.00 to $300.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Oppenheimer restated a market perform rating on shares of FedEx in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised FedEx from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $296.00 to $359.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. Stephens reissued an overweight rating and issued a $325.00 price target on shares of FedEx in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of FedEx from $339.00 to $335.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $315.95.

FedEx Stock Down 15.2 %

Shares of FedEx stock opened at $254.64 on Friday. FedEx has a 1-year low of $224.69 and a 1-year high of $313.84. The company has a market capitalization of $62.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.78, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.17. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $292.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $275.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.32.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 19th. The shipping service provider reported $3.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.82 by ($1.22). FedEx had a return on equity of 16.70% and a net margin of 4.94%. The company had revenue of $21.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.55 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that FedEx will post 20.82 EPS for the current year.

FedEx Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. FedEx’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.04%.

Insider Transactions at FedEx

In related news, EVP Brie Carere sold 1,958 shares of FedEx stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.43, for a total transaction of $607,821.94. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,189,042.91. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Robert B. Carter sold 16,010 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.48, for a total transaction of $4,714,624.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 59,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,634,640.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brie Carere sold 1,958 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.43, for a total transaction of $607,821.94. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,189,042.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,944 shares of company stock valued at $9,882,355. 8.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of FedEx

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of FedEx by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,868,165 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $5,756,602,000 after acquiring an additional 1,056,061 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of FedEx by 32.5% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,831,084 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $2,558,718,000 after purchasing an additional 2,163,622 shares during the period. Putnam Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of FedEx by 38.1% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 2,893,781 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $732,040,000 after buying an additional 798,084 shares during the period. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in FedEx by 43.5% in the 1st quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 2,258,579 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $654,401,000 after buying an additional 684,679 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in FedEx by 34.6% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,248,137 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $674,336,000 after acquiring an additional 578,350 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.47% of the company’s stock.

About FedEx

FedEx Corporation provides transportation, e-commerce, and business services in the United States and internationally. It operates through FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, and FedEx Services segments. The FedEx Express segment offers express transportation, small-package ground delivery, and freight transportation services; and time-critical transportation services.