United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Receives $140.73 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty-four analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation, thirteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $140.73.

Several brokerages have recently commented on UPS. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $147.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,136,394 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $8,213,699,000 after purchasing an additional 370,705 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $4,035,313,000 after purchasing an additional 613,409 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.1% in 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 last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,704,334 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,979,695,000 after purchasing an additional 414,710 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,994,853,000 after purchasing an additional 14,539,321 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of United Parcel Service stock traded down $0.25 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $116.35. 6,455,199 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,796,271. 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 company has a market cap of $99.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98. United Parcel Service has a fifty-two week low of $109.40 and a fifty-two week high of $158.95. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $128.33.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that United Parcel Service will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.64%. This is an increase from United Parcel Service's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service's payout ratio is presently 97.04%.

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.