Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Purchases 19,666 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 285,266 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 19,666 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $38,893,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,994,853,000 after buying an additional 14,539,321 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 284.8% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,569,831 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $351,681,000 after acquiring an additional 1,901,914 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,927,607 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,989,609,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 5,136.2% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,079,964 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $147,242,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059,339 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on UPS. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen began coverage on United Parcel Service in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $144.00 price objective on the stock. Oppenheimer increased their price target on United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $165.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted 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 research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.52.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.5 %

UPS stock opened at $135.68 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $115.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.99. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.12 and a 12 month high of $163.82. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $133.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $133.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

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

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is presently 98.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. This represents a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.