Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp Purchases New Position in United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS)

Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 1,265 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $160,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 65,136,394 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $8,213,699,000 after acquiring an additional 370,705 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 2.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,597,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,035,313,000 after buying an additional 613,409 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in United Parcel Service by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,264,665 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,933,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,337,058 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in United Parcel Service by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,289,624 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,080,170,000 after purchasing an additional 373,202 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of United Parcel Service by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,627,550 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,448,960,000 after purchasing an additional 380,229 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Parcel Service Stock Performance

Shares of UPS stock opened at $110.94 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $119.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $126.68. The company has a market cap of $94.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.94. United Parcel Service, Inc. has a 12-month low of $109.40 and a 12-month high of $154.29.

United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.23. United Parcel Service had a net margin of 6.35% and a return on equity of 39.13%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.47 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that United Parcel Service, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

United Parcel Service Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.64 dividend. This is an increase from United Parcel Service’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.91%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. United Parcel Service’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 97.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded United Parcel Service from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of United Parcel Service from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on United Parcel Service from $100.00 to $82.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird cut United Parcel Service from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $160.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of United Parcel Service from $170.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Parcel Service currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.91.

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.