Highland Capital Management LLC Sells 470 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Highland Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 20,561 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 470 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $2,593,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in United Parcel Service by 4.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 829,280 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $113,064,000 after buying an additional 33,989 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its position in United Parcel Service by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,934,000 after acquiring an additional 6,941 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter valued at $1,305,000. Finally, Cohen Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake 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 worth $2,503,000 after purchasing an additional 3,835 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $134.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America raised United Parcel Service from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.24.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

UPS opened at $114.94 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $98.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.00. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.62 and a 12 month high of $158.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $130.72.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 37.38% and a net margin of 6.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.47 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is 98.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 45,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,249,229.86. This trade represents a 13.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.