Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. Invests $605,000 in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 4,518 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $605,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UPS. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 291.7% during the second quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 235 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 869.6% during the first quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 223 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 168.5% during the second quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 247 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $169.00 to $155.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $175.00 to $159.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $162.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $157.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.05.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

NYSE UPS opened at $131.33 on Wednesday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.12 and a 12 month high of $163.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The company has a market capitalization of $112.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $130.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.19.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by ($0.20). United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 35.27% and a net margin of 5.87%. The business had revenue of $21.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.54 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th were issued a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.96%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director William R. Johnson acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $128.61 per share, with a total value of $643,050.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,160 shares in the company, valued at approximately $663,627.60. The trade was a 3,100.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Company 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.