Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Grows Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC grew its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 34,571 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 337 shares during the quarter. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $8,491,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of UNP. Personal CFO Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 39.3% in the third quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Union Pacific by 46.9% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 87,905 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $21,596,000 after acquiring an additional 28,052 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 48.3% in the 4th quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 18,512 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,547,000 after acquiring an additional 6,031 shares in the last quarter. Advisor Resource Council acquired a new position in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth $606,000. Finally, Factory Mutual Insurance Co. increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 184,700 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $45,366,000 after purchasing an additional 19,600 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Union Pacific Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of UNP stock traded up $1.79 on Friday, reaching $231.60. 803,522 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,283,167. The company has a market capitalization of $141.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.13, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $245.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $233.53. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $190.37 and a twelve month high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.56 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.45% and a return on equity of 46.87%. The company had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.71%.

Insider Activity at Union Pacific

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $937,500.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 56,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,170,500. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on UNP. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Union Pacific from $248.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Benchmark increased their price objective on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $266.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $228.00 to $251.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $282.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $253.48.

About Union Pacific

Union Pacific Corporation, through its subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad Company, operates in the railroad business in the United States. The company offers transportation services for grain and grain products, fertilizers, food and refrigerated products, and coal and renewables to grain processors, animal feeders, ethanol producers, renewable biofuel producers, and other agricultural users; and construction products, industrial chemicals, plastics, forest products, specialized products, metals and ores, petroleum, liquid petroleum gases, soda ash, and sand, as well as finished automobiles, automotive parts, and merchandise in intermodal containers.