United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-four ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have given a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $111.50.

UPS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on United Parcel Service from $96.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Stephens lifted their price target on United Parcel Service from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on United Parcel Service from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup lifted their price target on United Parcel Service from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on United Parcel Service from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Groupama Asset Managment grew its position in United Parcel Service by 33.0% during the 1st quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 6,308 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 1,564 shares during the last quarter. Groupe la Francaise lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 14.3% in the 1st quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 16,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,575,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Norris Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the 1st quarter worth $2,564,000. Orographic Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the 1st quarter worth $499,000. Finally, Royal Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 55.5% in the 1st quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 15,414 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,516,000 after acquiring an additional 5,500 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

United Parcel Service stock opened at $101.12 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $102.72. The company has a market capitalization of $85.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.06. United Parcel Service has a 1 year low of $82.00 and a 1 year high of $122.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.21.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $21.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.99 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 5.94% and a return on equity of 35.95%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.49 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that United Parcel Service will post 7.1 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.5%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is presently 106.15%.

United Parcel Service Company Profile

United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) is a global package delivery and supply chain management company that provides a broad range of transportation, logistics and e-commerce services. Its core business centers on small-package delivery and last-mile distribution for business and individual customers, supported by a network of ground transportation, air cargo operations (UPS Airlines) and sorting facilities. In addition to parcel delivery, UPS offers freight transportation, contract logistics, warehousing, customs brokerage and reverse-logistics solutions designed to support domestic and international commerce.

The company traces its roots to 1907 when it began as a small messenger service in the United States and later evolved into the United Parcel Service.