Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Trims Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management decreased its stake in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 82.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,383 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 61,666 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $1,472,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPS. King Wealth Management Group boosted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 274.9% in the first quarter. King Wealth Management Group now owns 7,746 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $852,000 after purchasing an additional 5,680 shares during the period. Cordatus Wealth Management LLC raised its position in United Parcel Service by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Cordatus Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,022 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,432,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 15.8% in the 1st quarter. Atlas Wealth LLC now owns 3,186 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $350,000 after buying an additional 435 shares during the period. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Parcel Service in the first quarter valued at about $202,000. Finally, Davis R M Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 3.9% in the first quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 12,013 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,321,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the period. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at United Parcel Service

In related news, Director William R. Johnson acquired 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were bought at an average price of $86.50 per share, with a total value of $432,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 10,160 shares in the company, valued at $878,840. This trade represents a 96.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Carol B. Tome acquired 11,682 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were bought at an average price of $85.67 per share, with a total value of $1,000,796.94. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 24,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,117,591.06. The trade was a 89.61% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on UPS shares. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of United Parcel Service from $117.00 to $107.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on United Parcel Service from $110.00 to $107.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wolfe Research lowered their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $113.00 to $112.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Daiwa America lowered their price objective on United Parcel Service from $120.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Stifel Canada dropped their target price on United Parcel Service from $145.00 to $124.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $112.81.

United Parcel Service Stock Down 1.9%

United Parcel Service stock opened at $84.54 on Friday. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a twelve month low of $84.28 and a twelve month high of $145.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $106.14.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $21.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.90 billion. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.34% and a return on equity of 39.61%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.79 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Parcel Service Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.62%.

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.