United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Shares Sold by Impax Asset Management Group plc

Impax Asset Management Group plc decreased its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 307,757 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 27,549 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $38,808,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UPS. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew 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 worth $282,783,000 after buying an additional 1,851,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,927,607 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,989,609,000 after buying an additional 1,320,921 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in United Parcel Service by 30.7% in 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 period. 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UPS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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 report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.73.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

UPS opened at $116.35 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $123.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $128.39. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.40 and a 52-week high of $158.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The company has a market cap of $99.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 last year, the business posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

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