Level Four Advisory Services LLC Buys 13,971 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

Key Points

• Level Four Advisory Services LLC purchased an additional 13,971 shares of United Parcel Service (UPS), increasing its stake by 32.5% to a total of 56,928 shares valued at approximately $6.26 million.
• UPS reported quarterly earnings of $1.55 per share, slightly missing the consensus estimate, while experiencing a 2.7% decline in year-over-year revenue.
• Insider trading activity included significant purchases by Director William R. Johnson and CEO Carol B. Tome, increasing their respective stock holdings by 96.9% and 89.6%.

Level Four Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) by 32.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 56,928 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 13,971 shares during the quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC's holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $6,262,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 7,227 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $911,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Juncture Wealth Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.5% in the first quarter. Juncture Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 4,124 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $454,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.4% in the first quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. now owns 7,544 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $830,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Diligent Investors LLC increased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Diligent Investors LLC now owns 6,722 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Finally, Lodestone Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,895 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on UPS. Daiwa America decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $103.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $154.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Galvan Research dropped their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 30th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of United Parcel Service from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $100.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $124.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $112.81.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UPS opened at $87.7170 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $96.69 and a 200-day moving average of $102.44. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12 month low of $84.28 and a 12 month high of $145.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.35 billion, a PE ratio of 13.05, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.12.

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

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.5%. United Parcel Service's payout ratio is 97.62%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Parcel Service news, Director William R. Johnson acquired 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $86.50 per share, for a total transaction of $432,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,160 shares in the company, valued at $878,840. This represents a 96.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Carol B. Tome acquired 11,682 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $85.67 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,796.94. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 24,718 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,117,591.06. This represents a 89.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

United Parcel Service Profile

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.

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