Tufton Capital Management Buys 4,014 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Tufton Capital Management boosted its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 58,851 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,014 shares during the period. United Parcel Service comprises about 1.4% of Tufton Capital Management’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Tufton Capital Management’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $7,421,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in United Parcel Service by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $113,064,000 after acquiring an additional 33,989 shares during the period. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth $461,000. Synovus Financial Corp increased 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 buying an additional 6,941 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $232,959,000 after buying an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. Finally, HF Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth $1,305,000. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UPS shares. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UPS opened at $117.61 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $122.54 and a 200 day moving average of $128.11. The stock has a market cap of $100.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.40 and a 12 month high of $158.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.58%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 97.04%.

United Parcel Service Company 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.