Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Lowers Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA trimmed its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 25.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 887,096 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 298,854 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $120,947,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC raised its position in United Parcel Service by 1.4% in the second quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,068 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Cigna Investments Inc. New raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.0% during the third quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New now owns 7,508 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,024,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Gleason Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.2% in the second quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 6,496 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $889,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 15,837 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,167,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tradewinds LLC. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Tradewinds LLC. now owns 4,487 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $612,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of United Parcel Service stock opened at $134.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.12 and a 1-year high of $163.82. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $132.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $134.20. The company has a market capitalization of $115.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.99.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.10 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. The company’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $159.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Argus upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com raised United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.52.

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.