12,951 Shares in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Purchased by NFJ Investment Group LLC

NFJ Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 12,951 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $1,633,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,075,393,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in United Parcel Service in the fourth quarter valued at about $393,680,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 10,979,909 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,384,567,000 after buying an additional 1,484,452 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 77.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $397,329,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378,136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,933,674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,337,058 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $119.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $90.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $128.74.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

UPS stock traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $97.34. 1,037,860 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,361,894. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.55 and a 1-year high of $153.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.14 billion, a PE ratio of 14.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $122.36. 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 (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.64 dividend. This is a boost from United Parcel Service's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.74%. United Parcel Service's payout ratio is 97.04%.

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.