I first discussed United Parcel Service (UPS) here on April 7, 2009, at a price of $51.28, and shares continue to head north. I obviously still like the business model at this stage.

UPS's 2011 revenue should increase 8% to 10%, after a probable 10% to 13% increase in 2010. UPS is benefiting from increased demand stemming from the strengthening U.S. and global recoveries and there will be better quarters are ahead. Look for increased pricing power, in some delivery segments, and higher volumes.

I'd also raise the sell/stop loss to $54 from $48 at this stage.

Continue reading UPS: Back Up the Truck

UPS: Back Up the Truck originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 04 Feb 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Friday's fourth-quarter GDP numbers offered more evidence that the economy is picking up steam, but one of the biggest obstacles to the recovery remains the stubbornly high unemployment rate. We'll find out whether there's been any movement on that front when employment data for January comes out this week. The Challenger Job-Cut report and ADP employment data are due Wednesday, and the government's unemployment rate on Friday. Another mild increase in jobs is expected, in line with the three-month average, but not enough to significantly reduce the unemployment rate.

Also look for the ISM manufacturing and nonmanufacturing indexes this week, as well as the Chicago PMI and the New York NAPM index. And Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke will speak to the National Press Club on Thursday.

Continue reading Week in Preview: January Employment Data, UPS Earnings and More

Week in Preview: January Employment Data, UPS Earnings and More originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 30 Jan 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you took advantage of United Parcel Service's (UPS) summer correction to add to your position, you made the right move. UPS, which I first wrote about here on April 7, 2009, at a price of $51.28, accelerated out of a trough anear $55 to retest $70 this fall. And I obviously still like the shares.

UPS's 2011 revenue should increase 8% to 10%, after a 10% to 13% increase in 2010. Without question, the worst is over for the delivery business and better quarters are ahead: increased pricing power, in some delivery segments, and higher volumes are likely as the U.S. and global economic expansions continue.

Continue reading UPS Is Still Delivering for Investors

UPS Is Still Delivering for Investors originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 11 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Delivery firm UPS (UPS) has announced third-quarter earnings and upped its full-year 2010 earnings. For the quarter, the dean of delivery earned 93 cents per share on an adjusted basis, topping the consensus estimate by a nickel. These results also easily trumped last year's third-quarter earnings of 55 cents per share. Quarterly revenue increased 9% to $12.19 billion.

UPS's earnings received a boost from higher prices, but also benefited by a 3.6% rise in the average number of packages shipped per day. The main benefit of this increase stemmed from an increase of 4% in revenue per package. International average daily shipping volume increased 13%, led by Asia, which saw an increase of 30% in volume. A majority of this international increase came from shipments of electronics from Asia.

Continue reading UPS Delivers Solid Third Quarter, Ups Full-Year Forecast

UPS Delivers Solid Third Quarter, Ups Full-Year Forecast originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 21 Oct 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

FedEx (FDX), a package delivery service operating in the same industry as United Parcel Service (UPS), is experiencing something of a disconnect between its earnings report and its stock performance. I'm writing this early in the trading session, so things could change later on, but my screen is currently showing a quote of $80.77 for FedEx, which means the equity is down 2.7%. Volume should be robust by the end of the day.

According to this article, the company made $1.33 per share. This was more than double the adjusted profit that was reported in the year-ago frame, and it was a penny better than analyst projections. What gives?

Continue reading FedEx a Buy After Reaction to Q4 News?

FedEx a Buy After Reaction to Q4 News? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Jun 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Bellwether Upgrades Show Signs of Hope

Bellwether Upgrades Show Signs of Hope originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 21 May 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading UPS Hits 52-Week High on Preliminary Q1 Earnings

UPS Hits 52-Week High on Preliminary Q1 Earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Apr 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage on BloggingStocks:

• Aol Inc. (AOL) reported a better-than-expected Q4 profit and said its revenue also topped estimates.
• Burger King Holdings Inc. (BKC) higher Q2 earnings topped analysts' estimates but same-store sales fell.
• Clorox Co. (CLX) higher Q2 earnings beat expectations and it lifted its full-year earnings guidance.
• Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) Q4 earnings more than doubled and beat Wall Street expectations, but shares fell.
• Gap Inc. (GPS) shares jumped after it forecast earnings above analysts' expectations, boosted by January sales.

Continue reading Earnings Highlights: Aol, Burger King, Comcast, Hershey, Kellogg, UPS ...

Earnings Highlights: Aol, Burger King, Comcast, Hershey, Kellogg, UPS ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 06 Feb 2010 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The strong fourth-quarter results that United Parcel Service (UPS) reported earlier this week may have led to an analyst's upgrade, but its done little for the stock. Shares inched upward both Tuesday and Wednesday on relatively low volume, but UPS is still trading in the same $57.00 to $59.00 range in which it's spent most of the past three months.

Tuesday, the Atlanta-based shipper said net income rose to $757 million, or $0.75 per share, from $254 million, or $0.25, a year ago. That beat the consensus estimate by a penny per share. Revenue fell 2.5% to $12.4 billion but beat the Street's forecast of $12.3 billion.

Continue reading UPS Sees No Bounce Following Strong Q4 Report

UPS Sees No Bounce Following Strong Q4 Report originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 04 Feb 2010 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Speedy delivery service United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) delivered a mixed bag of third-quarter results on Thursday.

The company reported earnings of 55 cents per share, topping the consensus estimate by two cents per share. While these results were better than the consensus estimate, they are a far cry from the 96 cents per share earned in the same quarter a year ago.

Quarterly sales came in at $11.15 billion, short of the consensus estimate of $11.17 billion and last year's $13.1 billion.

Continue reading UPS delivers lower Q3 earnings

UPS delivers lower Q3 earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As Trey Thoelcke observed in his earnings preview, FedEx (NYSE: FDX), a package shipper that competes with UPS (NYSE: UPS), is considered by many to be a bellwether of the economy. The company reported Q1 earnings on Thursday; what do the results say about the country's financial situation?

Well, to me, they say things are still rough. Revenues decreased 20%, operating margin declined, and earnings per share plummeted 53% to 58 cents. Yeah, I'd say we're still having problems.

Continue reading FedEx reports much lower income, but is all the bad news priced in?

FedEx reports much lower income, but is all the bad news priced in? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 18 Sep 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading FedEx & UPS challenged by USPS flat rates

FedEx & UPS challenged by USPS flat rates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Serious Money: UPS -- No sure things, but ...

Serious Money: UPS -- No sure things, but ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

You feel a little better as a shareholder when you realize the loss has some accounting context surrounding it. The bad feelings return, however, just like a package that you forgot to put postage on, when you check the results achieved in the year-ago period. You find out that FedEx earned $1.45 per diluted share at that time. Is there any saving grace now?

Continue reading FedEx packages better-than-expected profit

FedEx packages better-than-expected profit originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading FedEx misses on economic pressures, stock should be avoided

FedEx misses on economic pressures, stock should be avoided originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 20 Mar 2009 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

FedEx Corporation (NYSE: FDX), the arch enemy of United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS), is set to report third-quarter earnings this Thursday, March 19. Don't expect to see any growth on the bottom line. In fact, you may count on seeing a big drop. According to the following source, at this time last year, FedEx reported Q3 earnings of $1.26 per share. Analysts expect the delivery service to do about $0.46 per share. Such performance will represent a dive of over 60%.

Continue reading Earnings preview: Will Wall Street accept FedEx's Q3 package?

Earnings preview: Will Wall Street accept FedEx's Q3 package? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 18 Mar 2009 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Has BNI become 'Berkshire' Northern Santa Fe

Chasing Value: Has BNI become 'Berkshire' Northern Santa Fe originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 12:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Investor fear puts me 'naked' on Wall Street

Investor fear puts me 'naked' on Wall Street originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) reported a huge Q4 loss on a charge and the economic slowdown.
• Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) fell short of Q4 expectations but announced a dividend increase.
• Carlisle Companies Inc. (NYSE: CSL) Q4 numbers resulted in an analyst's upgrade.
• Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) warned that its earnings would fall well below expectations.
• Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) posted a bigger-than-expected loss and outlined cost cutting plans.
• Hasbro Inc. (NYSE: HAS) shares took a hit ahead of its earnings report due to rival Mattel's Q4 results.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: UPS, Kraft, Mattel, Avon, Northrop Grumman and others

Earnings highlights: UPS, Kraft, Mattel, Avon, Northrop Grumman and others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 07 Feb 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading UPS jumps on Q4 earnings, cost cuts

UPS jumps on Q4 earnings, cost cuts originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 03 Feb 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.