Avanza Fonder AB Purchases New Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 79,297 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $9,999,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in UPS. IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in United Parcel Service by 232.3% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 397.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 214 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 408.2% during the 3rd quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 249 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 720.0% during the 3rd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of United Parcel Service 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

UPS stock traded down $0.17 during trading on Friday, hitting $129.77. The company had a trading volume of 4,259,394 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,574,798. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $129.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.97. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $121.56 and a fifty-two week high of $161.35. The company has a market cap of $110.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.10 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.02%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service's payout ratio is 98.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on UPS shares. Bank of America raised United Parcel Service from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group increased their target price on United Parcel Service from $159.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised United Parcel Service from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $151.10.

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.