United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Upgraded by Wolfe Research to “Outperform” Rating

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wolfe Research from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm currently has a $147.00 price target on the transportation company’s stock. Wolfe Research’s price target suggests a potential upside of 17.69% from the company’s previous close.

UPS has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $163.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America boosted their target price on United Parcel Service from $132.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group raised their price target on United Parcel Service from $159.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.10.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of United Parcel Service stock opened at $124.90 on Wednesday. United Parcel Service has a one year low of $122.01 and a one year high of $161.48. The company has a market cap of $106.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.87, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.00. 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 fifty day moving average of $130.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $131.40.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $22.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that United Parcel Service will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $113,064,000 after acquiring an additional 33,989 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp raised its position in United Parcel Service by 8.6% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,934,000 after purchasing an additional 6,941 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake 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 worth $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares in the last quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 26.4% in the third quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,357 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,503,000 after buying an additional 3,835 shares during the period. Finally, Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 71.8% during the 2nd quarter. Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. now owns 14,530 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,988,000 after buying an additional 6,073 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

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.