Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Acquires 80,975 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. $UPS

Key Points

• Rakuten Investment Management increased its UPS stake by 483.7% in the fourth quarter, buying 80,975 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 97,715 shares valued at about $9.74 million.
• Other major institutions also added to UPS, including Norges Bank and Victory Capital Management, while institutional investors collectively own about 60.26% of the company.
• UPS reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.07 per share on revenue of $21.2 billion, and it continues to pay a quarterly dividend that annualizes to $6.56 per share, or a 6.0% yield.

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Free Report) by 483.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 97,715 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 80,975 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $9,740,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPS. Norges Bank bought a new position in United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth about $902,446,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in United Parcel Service by 72.9% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,818,314 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,370,639,000 after acquiring an additional 5,826,824 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter worth approximately $181,951,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of United Parcel Service by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,496,420 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $6,794,160,000 after buying an additional 1,218,432 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on UPS shares. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $118.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore cut their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a "hold (c)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. One research 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $111.50.

United Parcel Service Stock Up 1.2%

UPS stock opened at $110.15 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $103.68 and a 200 day moving average of $104.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.63 billion, a PE ratio of 17.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 52 week low of $82.00 and a 52 week high of $122.41.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $21.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.99 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 5.94% and a return on equity of 35.95%. United Parcel Service's revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.49 EPS. Sell-side 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were paid 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 (DPR) is 106.15%.

About United Parcel Service

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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