Inspire Trust Co. N.A. Boosts Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

Inspire Trust Co. N.A. lifted its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 20.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 48,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 8,000 shares during the period. Inspire Trust Co. N.A.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $4,761,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,496,420 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,794,160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,218,432 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 31,063,250 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,594,713,000 after purchasing an additional 288,720 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,154,091 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,703,291,000 after purchasing an additional 240,253 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,991,490 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $667,109,000 after purchasing an additional 761,217 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 17.3% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,724,265 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $561,678,000 after purchasing an additional 993,461 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of UPS opened at $106.65 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.06. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $100.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $103.05. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $82.00 and a twelve month high of $122.41.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $21.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.99 billion. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 35.95% and a net margin of 5.94%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.1 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 106.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on UPS. Citigroup increased their price target on United Parcel Service from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered United Parcel Service from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group reduced their price target on United Parcel Service from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price target on United Parcel Service from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $111.50.

United Parcel Service Company Profile

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.