FedEx Corporation $FDX Holdings Lifted by Cherokee Insurance Co

Key Points

• Cherokee Insurance Co raised its FedEx stake 20.7% to 25,050 shares (worth $7.24M), while large institutions including Vanguard, Dodge & Cox and AQR also added positions, leaving institutional investors with about 84.47% ownership of FDX.
• FedEx beat expectations with quarterly EPS of $5.25 (vs. $4.12 est.) and $24B in revenue (+8.3% YoY) and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.45 ($5.80 annualized, ~1.5% yield).
• Risks include recent insider selling totaling ~48,104 shares (~$17.6M), a ~23.6% rise in short interest, and potential near-term cash/operational outflows from CBP tariff refund obligations.

Cherokee Insurance Co raised its position in FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX - Free Report) by 20.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,050 shares of the shipping service provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,300 shares during the period. FedEx comprises about 2.9% of Cherokee Insurance Co's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Cherokee Insurance Co's holdings in FedEx were worth $7,236,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in FedEx by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,442,049 shares of the shipping service provider's stock valued at $5,527,870,000 after purchasing an additional 2,741,723 shares in the last quarter. Dodge & Cox lifted its holdings in FedEx by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 16,225,160 shares of the shipping service provider's stock valued at $3,826,055,000 after purchasing an additional 1,742,666 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of FedEx by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,814,938 shares of the shipping service provider's stock valued at $1,135,411,000 after acquiring an additional 269,567 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of FedEx by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,618,898 shares of the shipping service provider's stock valued at $853,372,000 after acquiring an additional 108,426 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of FedEx by 169.2% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,733,905 shares of the shipping service provider's stock valued at $638,203,000 after acquiring an additional 1,718,278 shares during the last quarter. 84.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FedEx Stock Down 1.2%

FDX opened at $387.83 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $369.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $314.62. The company has a market cap of $92.54 billion, a PE ratio of 20.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.28. FedEx Corporation has a 1 year low of $204.33 and a 1 year high of $399.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.47.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The shipping service provider reported $5.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.12 by $1.13. The firm had revenue of $24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.44 billion. FedEx had a net margin of 4.88% and a return on equity of 16.76%. The company's revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.51 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that FedEx Corporation will post 19.72 earnings per share for the current year.

FedEx Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th were given a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. FedEx's dividend payout ratio is 30.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at FedEx

In related news, EVP Kawal Preet sold 4,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.89, for a total transaction of $1,802,661.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 10,953 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,029,499.17. This represents a 30.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gina F. Adams sold 20,450 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $366.45, for a total transaction of $7,493,902.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 19,403 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,110,229.35. This trade represents a 51.31% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 48,104 shares of company stock worth $17,599,006 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

FedEx News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting FedEx this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent price momentum and strong multi-period returns have attracted attention, supporting investor confidence in the stock's rally. FedEx (FDX) Valuation Check After Strong Multi Period Share Price Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: Sector strength: commentary that transport names (including FedEx) are rallying has buoyed sentiment because shipping strength is often seen as a proxy for economic resilience. When Transport Stocks Rally, Recession Risks Fade: Technicals
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic growth tie-up in Vietnam with Viettel Post may expand cross-border volumes and emerging-market exposure for FedEx. Viettel Post and FedEx Announce Strategic Partnership to Strengthen Cross-Border Logistics in Vietnam
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest rose materially in April — up ~23.6% to 3,275,799 shares (about 1.4% of shares outstanding) with a ~2.1 days-to-cover — increasing the potential for further selling pressure and volatility as shorts accumulate.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and macro caution: a recent analyst piece argues that stretched valuation and macro/technical risks still outweigh FedEx’s fundamentals, which can prompt profit-taking after the strong run. FedEx Corporation: Valuation, Technical, And Macro Downsides Still Outweigh Fundamental Soundness
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/operational headwind: carriers (including FedEx) are expected to reimburse customers via the CBP tariff refund portal, which could mean near-term cash outflows and customer-relations costs. UPS, FedEx, DHL Set to Reimburse Customers as CBP Tariff Portal Goes Live

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on FDX. BNP Paribas Exane set a $280.00 price objective on shares of FedEx and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of FedEx from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of FedEx in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Argus upped their price objective on shares of FedEx from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of FedEx from $364.00 to $369.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, FedEx has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $398.04.

About FedEx

FedEx Corporation NYSE: FDX is a global logistics and courier company headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded by Frederick W. Smith in 1971 and beginning operations in the early 1970s, the company pioneered overnight express shipping and has since expanded into a diversified portfolio of transportation, e-commerce and supply-chain services. FedEx operates an integrated air-and-ground network that moves parcels, freight and documents for businesses and consumers worldwide.

FedEx's core operating segments include express parcel delivery via its FedEx Express division, domestic and residential parcel delivery through FedEx Ground, less-than-truckload (LTL) freight services, and logistics and supply-chain management solutions.

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