Summit Financial LLC Trims Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Summit Financial LLC lessened its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,983 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,930 shares during the period. Summit Financial LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $3,024,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth $1,075,393,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth about $393,680,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its position in shares of 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 period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 77.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $397,329,000 after purchasing an additional 1,378,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings 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 worth $2,933,674,000 after purchasing an additional 1,337,058 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on UPS shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $128.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research raised shares of United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.26.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE UPS opened at $110.00 on Tuesday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $108.30 and a 12 month high of $154.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.27, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $118.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.96%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is currently 97.04%.

About United Parcel Service

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.