United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) Stock Price Down 0.4% After Analyst Downgrade

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)’s stock price dropped 0.4% on Tuesday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $149.00 to $123.00. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the stock. United Parcel Service traded as low as $94.59 and last traded at $95.19. Approximately 2,246,889 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 52% from the average daily volume of 4,727,848 shares. The stock had previously closed at $95.56.

UPS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Evercore ISI upped their price target on United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Raymond James lowered their target price on United Parcel Service from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. 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 research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $133.00 to $129.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.32.

Institutional Trading of United Parcel Service

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UPS. Pacific Sage Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Pacific Sage Partners LLC now owns 1,677 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $212,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC raised its position in United Parcel Service by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Gleason Group Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 6,660 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $840,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,583 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $452,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Altus Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Altus Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,022 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.58, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $113.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $124.82.

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

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.15%. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is presently 97.04%.

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.