R Squared Ltd Purchases New Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 1,796 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $226,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in United Parcel Service by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $113,064,000 after acquiring an additional 33,989 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 8.6% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,934,000 after purchasing an additional 6,941 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. HF Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at $1,305,000. Finally, Cohen Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 26.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,357 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,503,000 after buying an additional 3,835 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on UPS. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $163.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value 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 represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

NYSE UPS opened at $135.46 on Wednesday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $121.56 and a 52 week high of $158.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The stock has a market cap of $115.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $128.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.75.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 98.49%.

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.