Dearborn Partners LLC Sells 3,338 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Dearborn Partners LLC lowered its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 125,195 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 3,338 shares during the quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $17,069,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UPS. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during 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 buying an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. Natixis bought a new position in United Parcel Service in the 1st quarter valued at $121,000. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in United Parcel Service by 26.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,357 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,503,000 after acquiring an additional 3,835 shares during the last quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 23.9% in the second quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC now owns 26,319 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,602,000 after purchasing an additional 5,069 shares during the period. Finally, Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 71.8% during the second quarter. Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. now owns 14,530 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,988,000 after purchasing an additional 6,073 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on UPS shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Baird R W raised shares of United Parcel Service to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Stephens decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $168.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on United Parcel Service from $163.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.52.

United Parcel Service Stock Down 0.8 %

UPS stock opened at $132.64 on Friday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.12 and a fifty-two week high of $163.82. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $132.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $134.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $113.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.99.

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

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 currently 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.