Pinebridge Investments L.P. Acquires 64,321 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Pinebridge Investments L.P. increased its stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 14.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 498,619 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 64,321 shares during the period. Pinebridge Investments L.P. owned approximately 0.06% of United Parcel Service worth $62,876,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UPS. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.3% during the 3rd 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. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter valued at about $461,000. Synovus Financial Corp raised its position in United Parcel Service by 8.6% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,934,000 after purchasing an additional 6,941 shares in the last quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth about $1,305,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 27.2% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 131,623 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $16,304,000 after purchasing an additional 28,108 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on UPS. Baird R W lowered United Parcel Service from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $119.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $149.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Galvan Research decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $147.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.74.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS opened at $96.84 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $109.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.72 billion, a PE ratio of 14.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a one year low of $90.55 and a one year high of $153.42.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase 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 6.77%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.04%.

United Parcel Service 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.