United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Stock Position Lifted by Beech Hill Advisors Inc.

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 9.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,736 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,738 shares during the period. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the second quarter worth $2,986,000. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 25.2% during the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co now owns 67,399 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,224,000 after buying an additional 13,563 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 8.1% during the 2nd quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 59,098 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,088,000 after buying an additional 4,440 shares in the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 69.2% in the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 44,558 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,098,000 after acquiring an additional 18,227 shares during the period. Finally, Zega Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the second quarter valued at approximately $263,000. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on UPS. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of United Parcel Service in a research report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Susquehanna upped their price target on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.10.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

NYSE:UPS traded up $2.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $129.56. 431,495 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,092,394. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $129.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $131.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $121.56 and a 12 month high of $161.35.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $22.20 billion during 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.03%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 98.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at $6,249,229.86. This trade represents a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service 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.