FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX – Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,360,000 shares, a growth of 6.0% from the February 29th total of 3,170,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,300,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
FDX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on FedEx from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Melius Research upgraded FedEx from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $310.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of FedEx in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. BNP Paribas restated an “underperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of FedEx in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on FedEx from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $300.85.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, VP Guy M. Erwin II sold 2,749 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.11, for a total transaction of $794,763.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,507.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other FedEx news, VP Guy M. Erwin II sold 2,749 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.11, for a total value of $794,763.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,507.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Sriram Krishnasamy sold 354 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.19, for a total value of $102,373.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 11,147 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,223,600.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 19,393 shares of company stock valued at $5,581,475. Insiders own 8.73% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On FedEx
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of FedEx by 11.0% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 133,075 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $35,254,000 after acquiring an additional 13,197 shares during the period. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of FedEx during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of FedEx by 2.3% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 595,122 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $157,660,000 after acquiring an additional 13,642 shares during the period. Skba Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of FedEx by 0.3% during the third quarter. Skba Capital Management LLC now owns 39,320 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $10,417,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Vishria Bird Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of FedEx by 21.2% during the third quarter. Vishria Bird Financial Group LLC now owns 80,348 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $21,286,000 after acquiring an additional 14,036 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.47% of the company’s stock.
FedEx Trading Down 1.7 %
FedEx stock traded down $4.80 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $275.33. 2,515,431 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,194,805. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.88, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.21. FedEx has a fifty-two week low of $213.80 and a fifty-two week high of $291.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $252.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $253.00.
FedEx (NYSE:FDX – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The shipping service provider reported $3.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.49 by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $21.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.95 billion. FedEx had a return on equity of 16.60% and a net margin of 5.02%. The company’s revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.41 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that FedEx will post 17.6 earnings per share for the current year.
FedEx declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the shipping service provider to reacquire up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.
FedEx Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a $1.26 dividend. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. FedEx’s payout ratio is 29.07%.
About FedEx
FedEx Corporation provides transportation, e-commerce, and business services in the United States and internationally. It operates through FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, and FedEx Services segments. The FedEx Express segment offers express transportation, small-package ground delivery, and freight transportation services; and time-critical transportation services.