Clearstead Advisors LLC Acquires 14,967 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

Key Points

• Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its UPS stake by 85.4% in the fourth quarter, adding 14,967 shares and bringing its total to 32,484 shares worth about $3.22 million.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted their UPS holdings, and institutions now own 60.26% of the company’s stock.
• UPS reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings with EPS of $1.07 versus $1.02 estimated, while revenue came in at $21.20 billion; the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, implying a 6.4% yield.

Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) by 85.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 32,484 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 14,967 shares during the quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC's holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $3,222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UPS. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 507.8% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,244,234 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $321,796,000 after buying an additional 2,710,470 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $181,951,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in United Parcel Service by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,496,420 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $6,794,160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,218,432 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in United Parcel Service by 94.8% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,300,081 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $231,388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,119,372 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in United Parcel Service by 17.3% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,724,265 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $561,678,000 after purchasing an additional 993,461 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on UPS. Stephens increased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $99.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $101.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Evercore decreased their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Parcel Service presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $111.50.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS stock opened at $102.01 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $86.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.06. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $82.00 and a 52 week high of $122.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $100.50 and a 200-day moving average of $102.90.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $21.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.99 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 5.94% and a return on equity of 35.95%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.49 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.1 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. United Parcel Service's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 106.15%.

United Parcel Service Company Profile

United Parcel Service NYSE: UPS is a global package delivery and supply chain management company that provides a broad range of transportation, logistics and e-commerce services. Its core business centers on small-package delivery and last-mile distribution for business and individual customers, supported by a network of ground transportation, air cargo operations (UPS Airlines) and sorting facilities. In addition to parcel delivery, UPS offers freight transportation, contract logistics, warehousing, customs brokerage and reverse-logistics solutions designed to support domestic and international commerce.

The company traces its roots to 1907 when it began as a small messenger service in the United States and later evolved into the United Parcel Service.

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