Wells Fargo & Company Lowers United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Price Target to $150.00

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) had its price target lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Bank of America raised their price target on United Parcel Service from $132.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Argus upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $155.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $139.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.30.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

United Parcel Service stock opened at $124.90 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $130.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.40. United Parcel Service has a 12 month low of $122.01 and a 12 month high of $161.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.59 billion, a PE ratio of 18.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.00.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.13. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 37.38%. The company had revenue of $22.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.57 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that United Parcel Service will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.22%. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 98.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Parcel Service news, insider Norman M. Brothers, Jr. sold 7,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.57, for a total value of $1,015,025.25. Following the sale, the insider now directly 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in 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 during the period. Synovus Financial Corp raised its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 87,531 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,934,000 after buying an additional 6,941 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 1,061.1% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,772,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $232,959,000 after acquiring an additional 1,620,091 shares during the last quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in United Parcel Service by 26.4% during the third quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,357 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,503,000 after acquiring an additional 3,835 shares during the period. Finally, Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 71.8% during the second quarter. Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. now owns 14,530 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,988,000 after acquiring an additional 6,073 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.