FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-five research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $314.00.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of FedEx from $310.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $327.00 target price (up previously from $303.00) on shares of FedEx in a report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of FedEx from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of FedEx from $316.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of FedEx from $340.00 to $333.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 21st.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other FedEx news, Director Paul S. Walsh sold 2,535 shares of FedEx stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.72, for a total value of $747,115.20. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,745 shares in the company, valued at $4,345,646.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other FedEx news, Director Paul S. Walsh sold 2,535 shares of FedEx stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.72, for a total transaction of $747,115.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,745 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,345,646.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard W. Smith sold 1,325 shares of FedEx stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.24, for a total transaction of $368,668.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 84,614 shares in the company, valued at $23,542,999.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 119,810 shares of company stock worth $32,924,413. 8.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FedEx

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in FedEx by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 982 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. KRS Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of FedEx by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Zullo Investment Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of FedEx by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 5,721 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $1,447,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in FedEx by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,274 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $369,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted 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 valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. 84.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FedEx Stock Up 1.5 %

NYSE:FDX opened at $299.84 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $73.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.16. FedEx has a one year low of $224.69 and a one year high of $302.41. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $258.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $256.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.36.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 25th. The shipping service provider reported $5.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.34 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $22.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.04 billion. FedEx had a return on equity of 16.70% and a net margin of 4.94%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.94 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that FedEx will post 20.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FedEx Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 24th will be given a $1.38 dividend. This is a positive change from FedEx’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 24th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.84%. FedEx’s payout ratio is 32.04%.

FedEx declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, March 21st that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the shipping service provider to reacquire up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.