Meeder Asset Management Inc. Sells 19,463 Shares of FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX)

Key Points

• Meeder Asset Management Inc. significantly reduced its holdings in FedEx Corporation, cutting its position by 83.4% after selling nearly 20,000 shares in the first quarter.
• FedEx's recent quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $6.07, exceeding analysts' expectations, alongside revenues of $22.20 billion.
• The company also announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.45 per share, up from $1.38, reflecting a 2.47% yield.

Meeder Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX - Free Report) by 83.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,869 shares of the shipping service provider's stock after selling 19,463 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in FedEx were worth $943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FDX. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in FedEx during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new stake in FedEx during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in FedEx during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in FedEx during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Abound Financial LLC bought a new stake in FedEx during the first quarter worth about $38,000. 84.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on FDX shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on FedEx from $275.00 to $260.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $315.00 price objective on FedEx in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of FedEx in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded FedEx from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on FedEx from $311.00 to $297.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, FedEx has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $283.25.

FedEx Price Performance

Shares of FDX stock traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $223.39. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,296,210 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,856,720. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $227.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $235.89. The company has a market capitalization of $52.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.23, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.35. FedEx Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $194.29 and a fifty-two week high of $308.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 24th. The shipping service provider reported $6.07 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.98 by $0.09. FedEx had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 4.65%. The company had revenue of $22.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.86 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.41 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that FedEx Corporation will post 19.14 earnings per share for the current year.

FedEx Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were paid a $1.45 dividend. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 23rd. This is a positive change from FedEx's previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. FedEx's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.36%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Marvin R. Ellison sold 3,610 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.94, for a total value of $855,353.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,829,176.80. This represents a 31.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul S. Walsh sold 3,610 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.29, for a total value of $860,226.90. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 15,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,696,592.77. This represents a 18.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,343 shares of company stock worth $2,228,816. Insiders own 8.87% of the company's stock.

About FedEx

FedEx Corporation provides transportation, e-commerce, and business services in the United States and internationally. It operates through FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, and FedEx Services segments. The FedEx Express segment offers express transportation, small-package ground delivery, and freight transportation services; and time-critical transportation services.