Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Sells 11,926 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lessened its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) by 22.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 42,363 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 11,926 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $5,342,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UPS. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 833.4% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $282,783,000 after acquiring an additional 1,851,900 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in 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 worth $397,329,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378,136 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,933,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,337,058 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,919,945 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $367,300,000 after purchasing an additional 685,259 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $4,035,313,000 after purchasing an additional 613,409 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on UPS shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Raymond James dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Baird R W downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

NYSE:UPS traded up $2.31 on Wednesday, reaching $119.10. The stock had a trading volume of 6,811,272 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,410,222. The company has a market capitalization of $101.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $109.40 and a 1-year high of $158.95. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $121.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $127.88.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 last year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. Research analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.51%. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.