Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. Reduces Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

Key Points

• Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. reduced its UPS stake by 74.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 26,929 shares and leaving it with 9,203 shares worth about $913,000.
• UPS reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings of $1.07 per share on revenue of $21.20 billion, though revenue still fell 1.4% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: UPS has a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $111.50, while the stock also offers a 6.0% dividend yield after paying a $1.64 quarterly dividend.

Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. cut its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) by 74.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,203 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 26,929 shares during the quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc.'s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $913,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. MCF Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 753.8% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 5,874 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $583,000 after buying an additional 5,186 shares during the last quarter. Ipsen Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Ipsen Advisor Group LLC now owns 5,670 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $562,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Pinebridge Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter valued at $9,324,000. FLC Capital Advisors grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. FLC Capital Advisors now owns 20,747 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,058,000 after buying an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 20,440 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,027,000 after buying an additional 3,425 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UPS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of United Parcel Service from a "hold (c)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $111.50.

United Parcel Service Stock Down 1.4%

UPS opened at $108.65 on Friday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $82.00 and a twelve month 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $102.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.56. The company has a market cap of $92.35 billion, a PE ratio of 17.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.05.

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

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.0%. United Parcel Service's dividend payout ratio is presently 106.15%.

United Parcel Service 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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