Weatherly Asset Management L. P. Raises Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Weatherly Asset Management L. P. lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 18.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,117 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 495 shares during the quarter. Weatherly Asset Management L. P.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 14,539,321 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 833.4% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $282,783,000 after purchasing an additional 1,851,900 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,927,607 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,989,609,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320,921 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 5,136.2% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,079,964 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $147,242,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059,339 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on UPS. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $160.00 to $130.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.9 %

UPS stock opened at $114.18 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $109.40 and a 1-year high of $158.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $125.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $129.25. The firm has a market cap of $97.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.89, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released 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 last year, the company earned $2.47 earnings per share. Research analysts predict 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 given a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.75%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 96.45%.

Insider Activity at United Parcel Service

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.