United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Stock Price Down 0.5% – Time to Sell?

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s stock price fell 0.5% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $124.50 and last traded at $125.17. 480,171 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 4,215,281 shares. The stock had previously closed at $125.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UPS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Argus upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $163.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $165.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $132.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.29.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a market cap of $107.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.98. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $132.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $132.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

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

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.16%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Parcel Service news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now 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 at this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of United Parcel Service

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UPS. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 15,779.6% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 14,631,461 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,994,853,000 after acquiring an additional 14,539,321 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 284.8% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,569,831 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $351,681,000 after purchasing an additional 1,901,914 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its holdings 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 valued at $282,783,000 after purchasing an additional 1,851,900 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position 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 buying an additional 1,620,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in 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 last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Parcel Service Company 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.