State of Wyoming Boosts Stake in United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

State of Wyoming boosted its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 4,192.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 558 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 545 shares during the period. State of Wyoming’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $61,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of UPS. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. purchased a new stake in United Parcel Service during the first quarter worth $26,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Citizens National Bank Trust Department lifted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 525.0% during the 1st quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 250 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 68.9% during the 1st quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 282 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas upgraded United Parcel Service to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $110.00 to $107.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $113.00 to $112.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $114.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $112.59.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Carol B. Tome purchased 11,682 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $85.67 per share, with a total value of $1,000,796.94. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 24,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,117,591.06. This trade represents a 89.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director William R. Johnson acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $86.50 per share, with a total value of $432,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 10,160 shares in the company, valued at $878,840. This represents a 96.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 17,182 shares of company stock valued at $1,477,382 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

United Parcel Service Trading Down 0.8%

UPS opened at $84.32 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.32. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $92.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $99.62. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 1-year low of $83.05 and a 1-year high of $145.01.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.01). United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.61% and a net margin of 6.34%.The business had revenue of $21.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.79 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.8%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.62%.

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.