United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC

Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 13.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,264 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,014 shares during the period. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $790,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $113,064,000 after purchasing an additional 33,989 shares during the period. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter worth $461,000. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its position in United Parcel Service by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,934,000 after buying an additional 6,941 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,620,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HF Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $1,305,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at $6,249,229.86. This trade represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UPS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Argus raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $158.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

NYSE UPS opened at $113.20 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $125.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $129.25. The stock has a market cap of $96.60 billion, a price-to-earnings 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, Inc. has a 52 week low of $109.40 and a 52 week high of $158.95.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted 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 return on equity of 39.13% and a net margin of 6.35%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.47 EPS. Analysts forecast 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. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. This is a boost 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 yield of 5.80%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.45%.

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.