Allworth Financial LP Increases Stock Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 143,765 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,914 shares during the quarter. Allworth Financial LP's holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $19,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UPS. Cigna Investments Inc. New boosted its position in United Parcel Service by 1.0% during the third quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New now owns 7,508 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,024,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Pacific Sage Partners LLC lifted 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 worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 12,596 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,717,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 16.7% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Tradewinds LLC. raised 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 worth $612,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

NYSE UPS traded down $0.46 on Wednesday, reaching $114.96. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,247,525 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,669,686. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $109.40 and a 52 week high of $158.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $123.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.58. The firm has a market cap of $98.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last announced 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 net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.47 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.71%. United Parcel Service's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on UPS shares. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of United Parcel Service from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on 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. Argus upgraded United Parcel Service from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on United Parcel Service from $170.00 to $141.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $140.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.