Salem Investment Counselors Inc. Has $5.11 Million Stock Position in FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX)

Salem Investment Counselors Inc. cut its holdings in shares of FedEx Co. (NYSE:FDX) by 0.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,840 shares of the shipping service provider’s stock after selling 56 shares during the quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings in FedEx were worth $5,109,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of FDX. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in FedEx during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of FedEx in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in FedEx during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in FedEx during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in FedEx during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. 84.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

FedEx Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of FDX opened at $224.91 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.23. FedEx Co. has a 52 week low of $194.30 and a 52 week high of $313.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.33, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.35. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $216.29 and a 200-day moving average of $247.91.

FedEx (NYSE:FDX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The shipping service provider reported $4.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.56 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $22.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.96 billion. FedEx had a net margin of 4.45% and a return on equity of 15.59%. FedEx’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.86 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that FedEx Co. will post 19.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FedEx Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.45 per share. This represents a $5.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.58%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 23rd. This is a positive change from FedEx’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. FedEx’s payout ratio is 34.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FDX has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded FedEx from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $300.00 to $275.00 in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of FedEx from $364.00 to $354.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of FedEx from $260.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of FedEx from $350.00 to $330.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of FedEx from $337.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, FedEx currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $295.33.

Insider Activity at FedEx

In other FedEx news, COO John Alan Smith sold 6,155 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.55, for a total value of $1,499,050.25. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 23,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,686,161.85. The trade was a 20.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 8.87% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

FedEx 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.