United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Hits New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $121.56 and last traded at $122.23, with a volume of 871235 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $123.28.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UPS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Monday, October 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.10.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $105.18 billion, a PE ratio of 18.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $129.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $131.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.13. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. The company had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. United Parcel Service’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.29%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Parcel Service news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UPS. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $113,064,000 after acquiring an additional 33,989 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp increased its position in United Parcel Service by 8.6% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,934,000 after purchasing an additional 6,941 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares in the last quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 26.4% during the third quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,357 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,503,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 30.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,919,945 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $367,300,000 after buying an additional 685,259 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.