AGP Franklin LLC Takes Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

AGP Franklin LLC acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 14,268 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $1,799,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $113,064,000 after buying an additional 33,989 shares during the last quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth approximately $461,000. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 6,941 shares during the period. HF Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth $1,305,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 27.2% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 131,623 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $16,304,000 after buying an additional 28,108 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UPS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Raymond James dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Truist Financial started coverage on United Parcel Service in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Susquehanna cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $129.70.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of UPS stock traded up $2.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $96.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,738,497 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,826,073. The company has a market cap of $82.29 billion, a PE ratio of 14.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. 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's fifty day simple moving average is $110.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $122.99. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $90.55 and a 52 week high of $153.42.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (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 last year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.81%. This is a boost from United Parcel Service's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.04%.

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.