United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Stock Price Up 0.3% After Analyst Upgrade

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 0.3% during trading on Tuesday after StockNews.com upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. The company traded as high as $135.70 and last traded at $135.68. Approximately 572,992 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 4,203,062 shares. The stock had previously closed at $135.34.

UPS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $169.00 to $155.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $139.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on United Parcel Service in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. They set a "hold" rating and a $144.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $151.71.

Institutional Trading of United Parcel Service

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UPS. Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 11,833 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,759,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 10.9% in the 1st quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 2,711 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $403,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 969 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $144,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Silverlake Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Silverlake Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,914 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $433,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 13,276 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,973,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $115.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.14. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $131.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $135.81.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.10 billion. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.38% and a net margin of 6.25%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th were issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.85%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. United Parcel Service's payout ratio is currently 98.49%.

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.