TLDR
- UPS reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.69 a share on $22.9 billion in sales, beating estimates.
- The stock was up about 3% Tuesday, after trading at $101.96 in premarket.
- UPS raised 2026 revenue guidance to $92.6 billion and operating profit guidance to $8.75 billion.
- Domestic package margin rose to 7% and the Amazon scale-down is complete.
- FedEx (FDX) reports earnings Wednesday.
United Parcel Service (UPS) stock traded about 3% higher Tuesday after the company beat third-quarter estimates and raised its full-year outlook. In premarket trading, the stock was up 1.6% at $101.96.
United Parcel Service, Inc., UPS
UPS reported adjusted earnings of $1.69 a share on sales of $22.9 billion. Analysts had expected about $1.62 to $1.63 a share on sales of $22.3 billion.
A year ago, UPS earned $1.74 a share on sales of $21.4 billion. Profit slipped a little, but revenue climbed.
CEO Carol Tome said the results show stronger business fundamentals. She pointed to premium growth and better network efficiency.
Tome said UPS enters the holiday season “from a position of strength.” That strength is why the company lifted its guidance.
Guidance moves higher
UPS now expects 2026 revenue of $92.6 billion, up from $91.2 billion. Analysts were looking for about $91.73 billion.
Operating profit guidance rose to $8.75 billion from $8.65 billion. Adjusted profit is now seen near $7.28 a share, up from $7.22 in July.
Analysts had expected $7.19 a share. The guidance implies fourth-quarter revenue of $25.7 billion, against a Wall Street projection of $25.2 billion.
Fourth-quarter operating margin should be almost 13%, up about a point from last year. Bernstein analyst David Vernon has called the timing of a margin rise a “core debate” for investors.
Third-quarter margins were down a little from a year ago. The fourth quarter looks set to change that.
Amazon exit and cost cuts
The US Domestic Package unit makes up 60% of revenue. Its adjusted operating margin rose to 7% from 6.4%.
International Package posted a margin of 14.9%, up from 14.8%. UPS says the Amazon scale-down finished in the second quarter, with about two million daily packages gone.
UPS has saved $1.8 billion toward its $3 billion cost savings target through September. It has been closing facilities and cutting thousands of jobs.
Jefferies called it a “quarter of strong execution.” Evercore ISI’s Jonathan Chappell said the results give “some confidence in durability.”
Fuel likely lifted reported sales, since diesel is about $6.35 a gallon versus $3.67 a year ago. UPS plans to hire 100,000 seasonal workers for the holidays.
Before Tuesday, UPS stock was up just 1% year to date, trailing the S&P 500 by 11 percentage points. FedEx (FDX) reports earnings Wednesday and was up 0.84% at $303.09 in the latest session.
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