United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Holdings Lowered by Washington Trust Advisors Inc.

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 7.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 103,323 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 7,829 shares during the period. United Parcel Service makes up about 1.2% of Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $14,087,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares during the last quarter. Natixis purchased a new position in United Parcel Service during the first quarter valued at approximately $121,000. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in United Parcel Service by 26.4% during the third quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,357 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,503,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835 shares in the last quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC grew its position in United Parcel Service by 23.9% during the second quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC now owns 26,319 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,602,000 after purchasing an additional 5,069 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its position in United Parcel Service by 12.3% during the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 59,567 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $8,853,000 after purchasing an additional 6,502 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UPS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $162.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $144.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $159.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.71.

United Parcel Service Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE UPS opened at $132.49 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $132.06 and its 200-day moving average is $135.29. The stock has a market cap of $113.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.99. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.12 and a twelve month high of $163.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.13. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. The business had revenue of $22.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.10 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.92%. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 98.49%.

United Parcel Service 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.