United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Stock Holdings Lifted by Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 397,216 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,394 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $62,454,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPS. Meyer Handelman Co. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 30.2% in the 3rd quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 5,600 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $873,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in United Parcel Service by 1,599.3% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 345,109 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $53,792,000 after buying an additional 324,800 shares during the last quarter. NTV Asset Management LLC increased its position in United Parcel Service by 26.0% during the third quarter. NTV Asset Management LLC now owns 3,117 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $486,000 after buying an additional 644 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 30.4% during the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 5,976 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $931,000 after buying an additional 1,392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Donoghue Forlines LLC raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 92.1% in the 3rd quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC now owns 4,413 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $688,000 after acquiring an additional 2,116 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on UPS. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $165.00 to $170.00 in a report on Friday, February 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on United Parcel Service from $183.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Bank of America increased their target price on United Parcel Service from $157.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Raymond James lowered their target price on United Parcel Service from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, TheStreet upgraded United Parcel Service from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $165.23.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of UPS stock traded down $0.44 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $138.66. 2,995,428 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,760,187. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market cap of $118.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $147.85 and its 200-day moving average is $150.85. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $133.68 and a 52 week high of $192.98.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $21.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.84 billion. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.42% and a net margin of 6.60%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.22 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.70%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 94.49%.

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.