United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by First Dallas Securities Inc.

First Dallas Securities Inc. cut its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,319 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 98 shares during the period. First Dallas Securities Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,427,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. IFS Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 232.3% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 397.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 214 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 408.2% in the third quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 249 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 720.0% in the third quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the third quarter worth about $36,000. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on UPS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wolfe Research upgraded United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on United Parcel Service from $158.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.73.

Insider Transactions at United Parcel Service

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares in the company, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

UPS stock opened at $111.26 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $128.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $130.16. 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 market cap of $94.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.98. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.40 and a 52-week high of $158.95.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 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 quarter last year, the company earned $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.61 earnings per share for the current 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 given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.86%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 96.45%.

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.