United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Cut to Underperform at BNP Paribas Exane

BNP Paribas Exane lowered shares of United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) from a neutral rating to an underperform rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $85.00 price objective on the transportation company’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $96.00 price objective (down previously from $125.00) on shares of United Parcel Service in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Bank of America upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $114.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Wolfe Research reissued a “peer perform” rating on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on United Parcel Service from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.42.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UPS opened at $108.59 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. United Parcel Service has a 12 month low of $82.00 and a 12 month high of $136.99. The company has a market capitalization of $92.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.78, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $98.99 and its 200 day moving average is $93.27.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The transportation company reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.43. The business had revenue of $21.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.94 billion. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 40.07% and a net margin of 6.15%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.76 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that United Parcel Service will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were paid a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. United Parcel Service’s payout ratio is 101.39%.

Institutional Trading of United Parcel Service

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service in the second quarter valued at approximately $851,842,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in United Parcel Service by 11,517.3% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,503,413 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $252,695,000 after buying an additional 2,481,864 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 78.7% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,086,862 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $412,528,000 after buying an additional 1,799,882 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 45.4% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,730,804 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $578,467,000 after buying an additional 1,789,467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 443.6% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,549,962 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $156,453,000 after acquiring an additional 1,264,842 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More United Parcel Service News

Here are the key news stories impacting United Parcel Service this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan analyst expects UPS shares to rise, providing a credible buy-side view that can support near-term buying interest. JPMorgan bullish
• Positive Sentiment: An NLRB judge ruled UPS’s recording policy is allowed under labor law — a legal win that reduces regulatory/labor-risk uncertainty for investors. NLRB ruling
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage noting UPS has outperformed the market recently highlights short-term momentum that can attract momentum traders. Zacks performance note
• Neutral Sentiment: Increased search and attention from retail investors (Zacks data) can raise intraday liquidity and volatility but doesn’t change fundamentals. Zacks investor interest
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks educational pieces flag UPS among transportation names to watch via their Earnings ESP framework — useful for traders focused on earnings surprises but not a direct fundamental upgrade. Zacks transport picks
• Neutral Sentiment: Media notes that earnings/shareholder returns have trended down over recent years even as the stock had a short-term weekly rally — a reminder of the disconnect between sentiment and fundamentals. Yahoo/MarketWatch note
• Negative Sentiment: BNP Paribas Exane downgraded UPS to an underperform/strong-sell rating — analyst downgrades can pressure the stock by reducing investor confidence and prompting selling from mandates tied to ratings. BNP Paribas downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Federal probe and reporting focus on a part failure tied to a deadly UPS plane crash raise regulatory, reputational and potential liability concerns; multiple outlets report Boeing knew of prior failures — increased scrutiny can be a material negative for investor sentiment. Sky News report WSJ crash probe
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue and volume declines persist (Amazon cuts and softer demand), which weigh on EPS upside and justify cautious longer-term analyst views until volume trends stabilize. Zacks revenue note

About United Parcel Service

United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) is a global package delivery and supply chain management company that provides a broad range of transportation, logistics and e-commerce services. Its core business centers on small-package delivery and last-mile distribution for business and individual customers, supported by a network of ground transportation, air cargo operations (UPS Airlines) and sorting facilities. In addition to parcel delivery, UPS offers freight transportation, contract logistics, warehousing, customs brokerage and reverse-logistics solutions designed to support domestic and international commerce.

The company traces its roots to 1907 when it began as a small messenger service in the United States and later evolved into the United Parcel Service.