Analysts Set United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) Price Target at $120.26

United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the twenty-six research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $120.26.

Several research firms recently commented on UPS. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a "hold" rating and a $119.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $145.00 to $124.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays reduced their price objective on United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $90.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. UBS Group decreased their price objective on United Parcel Service from $141.00 to $127.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered United Parcel Service from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

Shares of UPS stock traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $98.57. The company had a trading volume of 3,930,944 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,148,295. The company has a market capitalization of $83.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.23. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $97.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.14. United Parcel Service has a 52-week low of $90.55 and a 52-week high of $148.15.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The transportation company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $21.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.25 billion. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.13% and a net margin of 6.35%. United Parcel Service's quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that United Parcel Service will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

United Parcel Service Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $1.64 dividend. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.66%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. United Parcel Service's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 95.63%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Parcel Service

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,075,393,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in United Parcel Service by 124.0% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,011,107 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $991,132,000 after acquiring an additional 4,988,044 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in United Parcel Service by 1,056.6% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,336,175 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $476,936,000 after purchasing an additional 3,961,255 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Parcel Service in the 4th quarter valued at $393,680,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service during the 1st quarter worth $201,358,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.26% of the company's stock.

United Parcel Service Company 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.