Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Trims Holdings in FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX)

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC cut its position in FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) by 4.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,337 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock after selling 329 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in FedEx were worth $2,200,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in FedEx by 5.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,868,165 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $5,756,602,000 after acquiring an additional 1,056,061 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its stake in FedEx by 32.5% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,831,084 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $2,558,718,000 after purchasing an additional 2,163,622 shares during the period. Putnam Investments LLC lifted its holdings in FedEx by 38.1% in the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 2,893,781 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $732,040,000 after purchasing an additional 798,084 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in FedEx in the 4th quarter worth approximately $700,291,000. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in FedEx by 43.5% during the 1st quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 2,258,579 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $654,401,000 after buying an additional 684,679 shares in the last quarter. 84.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other FedEx news, EVP Robert B. Carter sold 16,010 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.48, for a total value of $4,714,624.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 59,884 shares in the company, valued at $17,634,640.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other FedEx news, EVP Robert B. Carter sold 16,010 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.48, for a total value of $4,714,624.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 59,884 shares in the company, valued at $17,634,640.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sriram Krishnasamy sold 8,421 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.14, for a total value of $2,611,688.94. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,246 shares in the company, valued at $3,797,974.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 32,944 shares of company stock worth $9,882,355. 8.73% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

FedEx Stock Performance

Shares of FDX remained flat at $296.13 during midday trading on Thursday. The stock had a trading volume of 729,954 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,809,055. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $291.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $269.44. The company has a market capitalization of $72.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.18. FedEx Co. has a fifty-two week low of $224.69 and a fifty-two week high of $313.84.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 25th. The shipping service provider reported $5.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.34 by $0.07. FedEx had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 16.70%. The business had revenue of $22.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.94 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that FedEx Co. will post 20.94 EPS for the current year.

FedEx Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. FedEx’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of FedEx from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 24th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of FedEx in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. Argus lifted their target price on FedEx from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on FedEx from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of FedEx from $351.00 to $318.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $313.96.

About FedEx

FedEx Corporation provides transportation, e-commerce, and business services in the United States and internationally. It operates through FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, and FedEx Services segments. The FedEx Express segment offers express transportation, small-package ground delivery, and freight transportation services; and time-critical transportation services.