How to buy United Parcel Service shares

United Parcel Service, Inc is an integrated freight & logistics business with stocks listed in the US. United Parcel Service shares (UPS) are listed on the NYSE and all prices are listed in US Dollars. Its last market close was US$157.51 – a decrease of 1.89% over the previous week. Here's how to invest if you're based in Australia.

How to buy shares in United Parcel Service

1. Compare share trading platforms. To buy shares in a US company from Australia you'll need to find a trading platform that offers access to US stock markets. If you're just starting out, look for a platform with low brokerage and foreign exchange fees.
2. Open and fund your brokerage account. Complete an application with your personal and financial details, like your ID and tax file number. Fund your account with a bank transfer, credit card or debit card.
3. Search for United Parcel Service. Find the share by name or ticker symbol: UPS. Research its history to confirm it's a solid investment against your financial goals.
4. Purchase now or later. Buy today with a market order or use a limit order to delay your purchase until United Parcel Service reaches your desired price. To spread out your risk, look into dollar-cost averaging, which smooths out buying at consistent intervals and amounts.
5. Decide on how many to buy. At last close price of US$157.51, weigh your budget against a diversified portfolio that can minimise risk through the market's ups and downs. You may be able to buy a fractional share of United Parcel Service, depending on your broker.
6. Check in on your investment. Congratulations, you own a part of United Parcel Service. Optimise your portfolio by tracking how your stock — and even the business — performs with an eye on the long term. You may be eligible for dividends and shareholder voting rights on directors and management that can affect your stock.

United Parcel Service share price

Use our graph to track the performance of UPS stocks over time.

United Parcel Service shares at a glance

• Key figures

Information last updated 2021-04-09.

52-week range	US$86.8355 - US$176.9186
50-day moving average	US$163.9286
200-day moving average	US$165.5425
Target price	US$175.95
PE ratio	112.3507
Dividend yield	US$4.04 (2.35%)
Earnings per share (TTM)	US$1.54

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The value of your investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no indication of future results.

Is it a good time to buy United Parcel Service stock?

The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.

Technical Analysis of United Parcel Service, Inc by TradingView

United Parcel Service price performance over time

Historical closes compared with the last close of $157.51

1 week (2021-03-31)	-7.34%
1 month (2021-03-10)	-4.67%
3 months (2021-01-06)	-2.19%
6 months (2020-10-06)	-6.99%

1 year (2020-04-06)	64.62%
3 years (2018-04-06)	49.54%
5 years (2016-04-06)	50.48%

Is United Parcel Service under- or over-valued?

Valuing United Parcel Service stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of United Parcel Service's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.

United Parcel Service's P/E ratio

United Parcel Service's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 112x. In other words, United Parcel Service shares trade at around 112x recent earnings.

That's relatively high compared to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the NASDAQ 100 at the end of 2019 (27.29). The high P/E ratio could mean that investors are optimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're over-valued.

United Parcel Service's PEG ratio

United Parcel Service's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 2.1126. A low ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer better value, while a higher ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer worse value.

The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into United Parcel Service's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.

United Parcel Service's EBITDA

United Parcel Service's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is US$4.1 billion (£3 billion).

The EBITDA is a measure of a United Parcel Service's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.

United Parcel Service financials

Revenue TTM	US$84.6 billion
Operating margin TTM	1.67%
Gross profit TTM	US$11.5 billion
Return on assets TTM	1.47%
Return on equity TTM	67.97%
Profit margin	1.59%
Book value	0.76
Market capitalisation	US$150.4 billion

TTM: trailing 12 months

Shorting United Parcel Service shares

There are currently 8.8 million United Parcel Service shares held short by investors – that's known as United Parcel Service's "short interest". This figure is 19% up from 7.4 million last month.

There are a few different ways that this level of interest in shorting United Parcel Service shares can be evaluated.

United Parcel Service's "short interest ratio" (SIR)

United Parcel Service's "short interest ratio" (SIR) is the quantity of United Parcel Service shares currently shorted divided by the average quantity of United Parcel Service shares traded daily (recently around 3.2 million). United Parcel Service's SIR currently stands at 2.78. In other words for every 100,000 United Parcel Service shares traded daily on the market, roughly 2780 shares are currently held short.

However United Parcel Service's short interest can also be evaluated against the total number of United Parcel Service shares, or, against the total number of tradable United Parcel Service shares (the shares that aren't held by "insiders" or major long-term shareholders – also known as the "float"). In this case United Parcel Service's short interest could be expressed as 0.01% of the outstanding shares (for every 100,000 United Parcel Service shares in existence, roughly 10 shares are currently held short) or 0.0122% of the tradable shares (for every 100,000 tradable United Parcel Service shares, roughly 12 shares are currently held short).

Such a low SIR usually points to an optimistic outlook for the share price, with fewer people currently willing to bet against United Parcel Service.

Find out more about how you can short United Parcel Service stock.

United Parcel Service's environmental, social and governance track record

Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like United Parcel Service.

When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.

United Parcel Service's total ESG risk score

Total ESG risk: 23.34

Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and United Parcel Service's overall score of 23.34 (as at 12/31/2018) is pretty good – landing it in it in the 28th percentile of companies rated in the same sector.

ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like United Parcel Service is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).

United Parcel Service's environmental score

Environmental score: 8.62/100

United Parcel Service's environmental score of 8.62 puts it squarely in the 4th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that United Parcel Service is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

United Parcel Service's social score

Social score: 12.03/100

United Parcel Service's social score of 12.03 puts it squarely in the 4th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that United Parcel Service is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.

United Parcel Service's governance score

Governance score: 9.2/100

United Parcel Service's governance score puts it squarely in the 4th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that United Parcel Service is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

United Parcel Service's controversy score

Controversy score: 3/5

ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. United Parcel Service scored a 3 out of 5 for controversy – a middle-of-the-table result reflecting that United Parcel Service hasn't always managed to keep its nose clean.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary

United Parcel Service, Inc was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.

Total ESG score	23.34
Total ESG percentile	28.42
Environmental score	8.62
Environmental score percentile	4
Social score	12.03
Social score percentile	4
Governance score	9.2
Governance score percentile	4
Level of controversy	3

United Parcel Service share dividends

Dividend payout ratio: 49.27% of net profits

Recently United Parcel Service has paid out, on average, around 49.27% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 2.36% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), United Parcel Service shareholders could enjoy a 2.36% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In United Parcel Service's case, that would currently equate to about $4.04 per share.

While United Parcel Service's payout ratio might seem fairly standard, it's worth remembering that United Parcel Service may be investing much of the rest of its net profits in future growth.

United Parcel Service's most recent dividend payout was on 9 March 2021. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 18 February 2021 (the "ex-dividend date").

United Parcel Service share price volatility

Over the last 12 months, United Parcel Service's shares have ranged in value from as little as US$86.8355 up to US$176.9186. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".

Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (NYSE average) beta is 1, while United Parcel Service's is 1.005. This would suggest that United Parcel Service's shares are a little bit more volatile than the average for this exchange and represent, relatively-speaking, a slightly higher risk (but potentially also market-beating returns).

United Parcel Service overview

United Parcel Service, Inc. provides letter and package delivery, transportation, logistics, and financial services. It operates through three segments: U.S. Domestic Package, International Package, and Supply Chain & Freight. The U.S. Domestic Package segment offers time-definite delivery of letters, documents, small packages, and palletized freight through air and ground services in the United States. The International Package segment provides guaranteed day and time-definite international shipping services in Europe, the Asia Pacific, Canada and Latin America, the Indian sub-continent, the Middle East, and Africa. This segment offers guaranteed time-definite express options. The Supply Chain & Freight segment provides international air and ocean freight forwarding, customs brokerage, distribution and post-sales, and mail and consulting services in approximately 200 countries and territories; and less-than-truckload and truckload services to customers in North America. This segment also offers truckload brokerage services; supply chain solutions to the healthcare and life sciences industry; shipping, visibility, and billing technologies; and financial and insurance services. The company operates a fleet of approximately 127,000 package cars, vans, tractors, and motorcycles; and owns 58,000 containers that are used to transport cargo in its aircraft. United Parcel Service, Inc. was founded in 1907 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Frequently asked questions

• What percentage of United Parcel Service is owned by insiders or institutions?

  Currently 0.008% of United Parcel Service shares are held by insiders and 68.714% by institutions.

• When does the fiscal year end for United Parcel Service?

  United Parcel Service's fiscal year ends in December.

• Where is United Parcel Service based?

  United Parcel Service's address is: 55 Glenlake Parkway, N.E., Atlanta, GA, United States, 30328

• What is United Parcel Service's ISIN number?

  United Parcel Service's international securities identification number is: US9113121068

• What is United Parcel Service's CUSIP number?

  United Parcel Service's Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures number is: 911312106