United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Shares Up 0.6% - What's Next?

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) shares were up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $134.84 and last traded at $134.64. Approximately 449,198 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 4,190,201 shares. The stock had previously closed at $133.80.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on UPS shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target 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. Bank of America upped their price target on United Parcel Service from $132.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $151.71.

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United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market cap of $114.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $131.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.71.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.13. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.38% and a net margin of 6.25%. The firm had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 19th were paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.86%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. United Parcel Service's payout ratio is 98.49%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Natixis bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the first quarter worth about $121,000. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 26.4% in the third quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,357 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,503,000 after acquiring an additional 3,835 shares in the last quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 23.9% in the second quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC now owns 26,319 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $3,602,000 after acquiring an additional 5,069 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 12.3% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 59,567 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $8,853,000 after acquiring an additional 6,502 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nvwm LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.7% in the first quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 2,685 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $399,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company's stock.

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.