Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $11.61 Million Stock Holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 73,851 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,865 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in United Parcel Service were worth $11,611,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. MWA Asset Management bought a new stake in United Parcel Service in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,125,000. Chesapeake Wealth Management lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 7,886 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,229,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 387,381 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $60,908,000 after acquiring an additional 44,721 shares in the last quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 74,337 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,587,000 after acquiring an additional 740 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 289.9% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 60,201 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,384,000 after acquiring an additional 44,760 shares in the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on United Parcel Service from $178.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $153.00 price objective on shares of United Parcel Service in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. TheStreet upgraded United Parcel Service from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Argus cut United Parcel Service from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on United Parcel Service from $147.00 to $140.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $165.61.

Insider Transactions at United Parcel Service

In related news, Director Eva C. Boratto bought 1,400 shares of United Parcel Service stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $142.30 per share, with a total value of $199,220.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,220. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UPS opened at $142.91 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $149.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $151.34. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a one year low of $133.68 and a one year high of $197.80. The firm has a market cap of $121.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.05.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.01. United Parcel Service had a return on equity of 39.46% and a net margin of 7.37%. The firm had revenue of $24.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.62 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 8.2 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is a positive change from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.62. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio is 83.70%.

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.