United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Trading Down 0.3% After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) dropped 0.3% during trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $128.00 to $120.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. United Parcel Service traded as low as $110.16 and last traded at $110.69. Approximately 618,231 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 4,450,415 shares. The stock had previously closed at $111.01.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Truist Financial started coverage on United Parcel Service in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on United Parcel Service in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They set a "hold" rating and a $119.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $137.57.

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Institutional Trading of United Parcel Service

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UPS. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 14.5% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 32,289 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $4,402,000 after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 313,539 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $42,754,000 after acquiring an additional 13,924 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 69.0% during the 3rd quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 19,068 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,591,000 after acquiring an additional 7,786 shares during the period. White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 132.0% in the third quarter. White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,732 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $645,000 after purchasing an additional 2,692 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.0% in the third quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC now owns 41,922 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $5,716,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company's stock.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The business has a fifty day moving average of $118.52 and a 200 day moving average of $126.42. The company has a market cap of $93.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) 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 period last year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from United Parcel Service's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.98%. United Parcel Service's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.