United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Price Target Lowered to $153.00 at Stifel Nicolaus

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) had its price objective cut by equities researchers at Stifel Nicolaus from $156.00 to $153.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 15.32% from the stock’s current price.

UPS has been the subject of several other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on 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. Evercore ISI increased their price target on United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America raised United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. BMO Capital Markets raised United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.24.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UPS traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $132.68. The company had a trading volume of 492,282 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,315,732. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $128.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $130.82. The stock has a market cap of $113.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.00. 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 has a twelve month low of $121.56 and a twelve month high of $161.35.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 analysts’ expectations of $22.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that United Parcel Service will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Parcel Service

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total transaction of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,098 shares in the company, valued at $6,249,229.86. The trade was a 13.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UPS. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in United Parcel Service by 4.3% during 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 during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 8.6% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,934,000 after purchasing an additional 6,941 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares during the last quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,305,000. Finally, Cohen Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in 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 valued at $2,503,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is 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.