Donaldson Capital Management LLC Takes Position in FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX)

Donaldson Capital Management LLC bought a new position in FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 743 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KRS Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of FedEx by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $263,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in FedEx by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 5,721 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $1,447,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp boosted its stake in FedEx by 18.0% in the 4th quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 288 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC grew its holdings in FedEx by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 1,801 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $456,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of FedEx by 42.5% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 151 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.47% of the company’s stock.

FedEx Trading Up 0.1 %

FDX stock traded up $0.32 during trading on Friday, hitting $265.84. The company had a trading volume of 958,876 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,517,622. FedEx Co. has a 52-week low of $213.80 and a 52-week high of $291.27. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $262.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $254.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.33, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The shipping service provider reported $3.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.49 by $0.37. The business had revenue of $21.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.95 billion. FedEx had a net margin of 5.02% and a return on equity of 16.60%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.41 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that FedEx Co. will post 17.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FedEx announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, March 21st that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the shipping service provider to purchase up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

FedEx Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were given a dividend of $1.26 per share. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. FedEx’s payout ratio is 29.07%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Guy M. Erwin II sold 2,749 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.11, for a total value of $794,763.39. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $140,507.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 6,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.02, for a total value of $1,769,882.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,265,277.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Guy M. Erwin II sold 2,749 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.11, for a total value of $794,763.39. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 486 shares in the company, valued at approximately $140,507.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 136,668 shares of company stock worth $37,758,773. Company insiders own 8.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on FDX shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of FedEx from $306.00 to $303.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Melius Research raised shares of FedEx from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $310.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, January 8th. StockNews.com cut FedEx from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, February 11th. UBS Group increased their price target on FedEx from $323.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on FedEx from $327.00 to $351.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $301.33.

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.