Strategic Equity Management Takes $1.22 Million Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Strategic Equity Management purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 9,688 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,222,000. United Parcel Service accounts for approximately 0.5% of Strategic Equity Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth $393,680,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its holdings 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 worth $282,783,000 after acquiring an additional 1,851,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 77.7% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $397,329,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378,136 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 10,040,863 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,272,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,277,328 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on UPS. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Friday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $119.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.00.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UPS opened at $121.59 on Friday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1 year low of $109.40 and a 1 year high of $158.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company’s 50-day moving average is $121.73 and its 200 day moving average is $127.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $103.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced 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 period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is 97.04%.

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.