Clarkston Capital Partners LLC Decreases Stake in FedEx Corporation $FDX

Clarkston Capital Partners LLC lowered its stake in FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 278,773 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock after selling 61,487 shares during the period. FedEx makes up 1.9% of Clarkston Capital Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in FedEx were worth $80,526,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in FDX. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of FedEx by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $514,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in FedEx by 78.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,311 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $2,514,000 after purchasing an additional 4,548 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in FedEx during the second quarter valued at $586,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in FedEx during the second quarter valued at $186,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in FedEx during the second quarter valued at $456,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Gina F. Adams sold 20,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $366.45, for a total transaction of $7,493,902.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 19,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,110,229.35. This trade represents a 51.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Tracy B. Brightman sold 16,959 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $363.47, for a total transaction of $6,164,087.73. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,052 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,017,070.44. This represents a 60.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 48,104 shares of company stock worth $17,599,006 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on FDX. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of FedEx from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of FedEx from $457.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of FedEx in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $445.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of FedEx from $410.00 to $340.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Wolfe Research decreased their target price on shares of FedEx from $427.00 to $423.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $371.45.

FedEx Stock Down 0.1%

FDX stock opened at $337.65 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $80.57 billion, a PE ratio of 17.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.47. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $371.84 and its 200 day moving average is $342.64. FedEx Corporation has a one year low of $172.88 and a one year high of $342.81.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The shipping service provider reported $5.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.12 by $1.13. The company had revenue of $24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.44 billion. FedEx had a net margin of 4.88% and a return on equity of 16.76%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.51 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that FedEx Corporation will post 19.72 EPS for the current year.

FedEx Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Investors of record on Monday, June 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 22nd. FedEx’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.87%.

About FedEx

FedEx Corporation (NYSE: FDX) is a global logistics and courier company headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded by Frederick W. Smith in 1971 and beginning operations in the early 1970s, the company pioneered overnight express shipping and has since expanded into a diversified portfolio of transportation, e-commerce and supply-chain services. FedEx operates an integrated air-and-ground network that moves parcels, freight and documents for businesses and consumers worldwide.

FedEx’s core operating segments include express parcel delivery via its FedEx Express division, domestic and residential parcel delivery through FedEx Ground, less-than-truckload (LTL) freight services, and logistics and supply-chain management solutions.