Pavion Blue Capital LLC Trims Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Pavion Blue Capital LLC reduced its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 7.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,078 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,951 shares during the period. United Parcel Service accounts for about 1.4% of Pavion Blue Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Pavion Blue Capital LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $3,036,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPS. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 833.4% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,074,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $282,783,000 after acquiring an additional 1,851,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $232,959,000 after acquiring an additional 1,620,091 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,927,607 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,989,609,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320,921 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 30.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,919,945 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $367,300,000 after acquiring an additional 685,259 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,035,313,000 after acquiring an additional 613,409 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Parcel Service news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets upgraded United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Robert W. Baird cut United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Loop Capital dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UPS opened at $116.35 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $123.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.36. The stock has a market cap of $99.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.17. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a one year low of $109.40 and a one year high of $158.95.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $2.47 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.