HF Advisory Group LLC Purchases 2,886 Shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

HF Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 27.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,236 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 2,886 shares during the period. HF Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,456,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UPS. Norges Bank bought a new position in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth $1,075,393,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in United Parcel Service during the fourth quarter worth $393,680,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 10,979,909 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,384,567,000 after buying an additional 1,484,452 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 77.7% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,150,901 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $397,329,000 after buying an additional 1,378,136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in United Parcel Service by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,933,674,000 after buying an additional 1,337,058 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on UPS. HSBC downgraded shares of United Parcel Service from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $105.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $149.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of United Parcel Service in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $119.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $120.26.

United Parcel Service Price Performance

UPS stock opened at $98.57 on Thursday. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $90.55 and a one year high of $148.15. The stock has a market cap of $83.47 billion, a PE ratio of 14.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $97.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.49.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The transportation company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.11. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. The company had revenue of $21.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

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

About United Parcel Service

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.