Tortoise Investment Management LLC Sells 113 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Tortoise Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,644 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 113 shares during the quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $649,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 190,879 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $46,884,000 after purchasing an additional 5,513 shares during the period. Abel Hall LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth $223,000. Syon Capital LLC increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 4,120 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,012,000 after purchasing an additional 1,410 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 4,859 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,193,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Cim LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth $2,065,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Benchmark raised their price objective on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $266.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Union Pacific from $198.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $248.00 to $267.00 in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Union Pacific presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $260.70.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $222.10. 2,130,498 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,435,945. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $235.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $240.59. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $199.06 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $135.51 billion, a PE ratio of 21.19, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.19. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 44.34% and a net margin of 26.52%. The company had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.67 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.62%.

Union Pacific Profile

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.