FedEx (NYSE:FDX) Shares Gap Up Following Earnings Beat

FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $275.88, but opened at $294.00. FedEx shares last traded at $284.18, with a volume of 1,317,551 shares traded.

The shipping service provider reported $4.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.88 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.14 billion. FedEx had a return on equity of 15.61% and a net margin of 4.62%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.99 EPS.

FedEx Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. FedEx’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of FedEx from $345.00 to $330.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Raymond James boosted their target price on FedEx from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup upped their target price on FedEx from $301.00 to $331.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on FedEx from $328.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on FedEx from $333.00 to $332.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $324.88.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of FedEx by 4.1% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 256,870 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $70,300,000 after purchasing an additional 10,063 shares during the period. DGS Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of FedEx by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 1,405 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $385,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of FedEx by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,975,531 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $1,042,050,000 after acquiring an additional 314,380 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of FedEx by 251.8% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 14,936 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock worth $4,087,000 after acquiring an additional 10,690 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in FedEx by 18.9% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 18,870 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock valued at $5,164,000 after purchasing an additional 2,994 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.47% of the company’s stock.

FedEx Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $282.71 and a 200-day moving average of $281.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.01, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.18.

FedEx Company Profile

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.