United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc.

Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. trimmed its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,121 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,015 shares during the period. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,411,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UPS. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth $393,680,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 833.4% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $282,783,000 after buying an additional 1,851,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 77.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $397,329,000 after purchasing an additional 1,378,136 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,933,674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,337,058 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 10,040,863 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,272,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277,328 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS stock opened at $115.17 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.17. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a one year low of $109.40 and a one year high of $158.95. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $121.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $127.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.04, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.47 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.70%. This is a boost from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UPS. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America lowered their price target on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI increased their price target on 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, Wolfe Research upgraded United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.00.

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.