United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Purchased by Trust Co. of Vermont

Trust Co. of Vermont grew its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 109.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 18,416 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,616 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,322,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cigna Investments Inc. New grew 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 acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 0.6% during the third quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 12,596 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,717,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Gleason Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.2% during the third quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 6,576 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $897,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Tradewinds LLC. grew its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.8% in the third quarter. Tradewinds LLC. now owns 4,487 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $612,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OLD Second National Bank of Aurora raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.2% during the third quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 7,177 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $979,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

United Parcel Service stock traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $129.77. 4,260,034 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,680,905. The firm has a market cap of $110.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.60, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.00. 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 12 month low of $121.56 and a 12 month high of $161.35. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $130.97.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.13. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. The business had revenue of $22.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 98.49%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. This trade represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on UPS shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $165.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America upgraded United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $151.10.

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.