Northeast Investment Management Sells 11,818 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Northeast Investment Management lessened its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 29.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,474 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 11,818 shares during the period. Northeast Investment Management’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $3,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 2.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,035,313,000 after acquiring an additional 613,409 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,927,607 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,989,609,000 after buying an additional 1,320,921 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 2.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,289,624 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,080,170,000 after buying an additional 373,202 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,994,853,000 after acquiring an additional 14,539,321 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,627,550 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,448,960,000 after acquiring an additional 380,229 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at United Parcel Service

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

NYSE UPS opened at $113.20 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $125.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $129.24. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1 year low of $109.40 and a 1 year high of $158.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.13% and a net margin of 6.35%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.99 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.80%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 96.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on UPS shares. UBS Group reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $170.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Argus upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.73.

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.