United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS Shares Sold by Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc.

Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. reduced its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 15.1% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,820 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 679 shares during the quarter. Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $386,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 66,136,226 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $7,274,323,000 after acquiring an additional 999,832 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 25,045,472 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,754,751,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780,807 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in United Parcel Service by 124.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,011,107 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $991,132,000 after buying an additional 4,988,044 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in United Parcel Service by 0.3% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,415,523 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $815,633,000 after buying an additional 23,918 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in United Parcel Service by 3.8% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,719,145 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $519,059,000 after buying an additional 171,303 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at United Parcel Service

In other news, CEO Carol B. Tome bought 11,682 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $85.67 per share, with a total value of $1,000,796.94. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 24,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,117,591.06. This represents a 89.61% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Christiana Smith Shi bought 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $88.17 per share, with a total value of $44,085.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,085. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought 17,182 shares of company stock valued at $1,477,382 over the last 90 days. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on UPS shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $98.00 to $91.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $96.00 target price (down from $125.00) on shares of United Parcel Service in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Citigroup dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $127.00 to $114.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $103.00 to $97.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane raised United Parcel Service from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $111.44.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:UPS opened at $84.35 on Wednesday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1 year low of $82.00 and a 1 year high of $145.01. The stock has a market cap of $71.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.55, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a fifty day moving average of $88.86 and a 200-day moving average of $97.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.01). United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.61% and a net margin of 6.34%.The business had revenue of $21.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.79 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.8%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.62%.

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.