1,600 Shares in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Bought by Board of the Pension Protection Fund

Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 1,600 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $365,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. One Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $208,000. WealthPLAN Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 45.2% in the second quarter. WealthPLAN Partners LLC now owns 21,423 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,847,000 after purchasing an additional 6,669 shares during the period. Luts & Greenleigh Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the second quarter worth approximately $761,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its position in Union Pacific by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 24,415 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,524,000 after buying an additional 1,253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alpha Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in Union Pacific by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,453 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $329,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on UNP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.80.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Union Pacific stock opened at $229.25 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $218.55 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $234.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $238.87. The company has a market capitalization of $138.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.05, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.51 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were given a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.22%.

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.