Kovack Advisors Inc. Buys 628 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Kovack Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 14.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,997 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 628 shares during the quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $630,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 33,989 shares in the last quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $461,000. Synovus Financial Corp grew its position 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 in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $232,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HF Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $1,305,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of UPS stock opened at $118.97 on Friday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.40 and a 52-week high of $158.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.98. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $122.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.07.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.13% and a net margin of 6.35%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.51%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 97.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $150.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Baird R W cut United Parcel Service from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $155.00 to $145.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.73.

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.