Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires 323,115 Shares of FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,298,646 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 323,115 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 1.78% of FedEx worth $1,209,338,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cetera Trust Company N.A raised its position in shares of FedEx by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A now owns 7,925 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $2,230,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in FedEx by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,365 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $2,916,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. increased its holdings in FedEx by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. now owns 3,400 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $957,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc lifted its stake in FedEx by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc now owns 8,107 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $2,281,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WealthPlan Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of FedEx by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 1,680 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $473,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.47% of the company’s stock.

FedEx Stock Performance

Shares of FDX opened at $241.75 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market cap of $57.92 billion, a PE ratio of 15.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.23. FedEx Co. has a 12 month low of $217.22 and a 12 month high of $313.84. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $256.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $270.89.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The shipping service provider reported $4.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.56 by ($0.05). FedEx had a net margin of 4.45% and a return on equity of 15.59%. The business had revenue of $22.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.86 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that FedEx Co. will post 19.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FedEx Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. FedEx’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at FedEx

In other news, COO John Alan Smith sold 6,155 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.55, for a total value of $1,499,050.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 23,347 shares in the company, valued at $5,686,161.85. This trade represents a 20.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard W. Smith sold 2,576 shares of FedEx stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.93, for a total value of $713,371.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,984,589.98. This trade represents a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,711 shares of company stock worth $3,312,693. 8.87% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FDX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded FedEx from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on FedEx from $347.00 to $317.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Cfra Research raised shares of FedEx to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of FedEx from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $300.00 to $275.00 in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of FedEx from $275.00 to $260.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, FedEx presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $302.71.

About FedEx

FedEx Corporation provides transportation, e-commerce, and business services in the United States and internationally. It operates through FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, and FedEx Services segments. The FedEx Express segment offers express transportation, small-package ground delivery, and freight transportation services; and time-critical transportation services.