Empower Advisory Group LLC Buys 16,850 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 821,821 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,850 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $103,632,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cigna Investments Inc. New increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.0% in the third quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New now owns 7,508 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,024,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Pacific Sage Partners LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Pacific Sage Partners LLC now owns 1,677 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $212,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 0.6% in the third quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 12,596 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,717,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, Tradewinds LLC. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.8% in the third quarter. Tradewinds LLC. now owns 4,487 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $612,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:UPS opened at $116.37 on Monday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $109.40 and a 52 week high of $158.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.17. The company has a market capitalization of $99.31 billion, a PE ratio of 17.21, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $124.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $128.77.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.47 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.64%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is presently 96.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Parcel Service

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on UPS. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Profile

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.