Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Raises Stock Holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 308,405 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 4,595 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $38,890,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in UPS. IMG Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Generali Investments Management Co LLC acquired a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in United Parcel Service by 232.3% during the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in United Parcel Service by 397.7% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 214 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UPS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced 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. BMO Capital Markets raised United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on United Parcel Service from $166.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wolfe Research raised United Parcel Service from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $160.00 to $130.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.09.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS stock opened at $117.00 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $99.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94. The business’s 50 day moving average is $120.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12-month low of $109.40 and a 12-month high of $158.95.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 prior year, the company earned $2.47 EPS. Analysts expect 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 was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.61%. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Parcel Service’s dividend 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.