J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Buys 2,960 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 424,648 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,960 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $53,547,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UPS. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,136,394 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,213,699,000 after buying an additional 370,705 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,933,674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,337,058 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,704,334 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,979,695,000 after purchasing an additional 414,710 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 10,979,909 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,384,567,000 after buying an additional 1,484,452 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,895,828 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,373,964,000 after buying an additional 268,278 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

United Parcel Service stock opened at $96.34 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.61. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $90.55 and a twelve month high of $153.42. The company has a market capitalization of $82.29 billion, a PE ratio of 14.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (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 business posted $2.47 EPS. Research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.81%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on UPS. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Galvan Research dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $147.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Baird R W downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $129.70.

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.