FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH Lowers Stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH lowered its position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 21.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,082 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 844 shares during the period. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $758,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the third quarter valued at approximately $252,000. Logan Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Union Pacific by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 29,319 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,970,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 132.2% in the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,540 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,146,000 after buying an additional 6,001 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 12.7% in the third quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 1,938 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LRT Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $847,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP stock traded down $0.41 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $224.45. 360,877 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,294,830. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $199.33 and a 1-year 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 cap of $136.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.46, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.07. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $233.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $240.32.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.19. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.52% and a return on equity of 44.34%. The company had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on UNP. Stifel Nicolaus raised Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $248.00 to $267.00 in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Loop Capital downgraded Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $276.00 to $238.00 in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $280.00 price objective (up from $275.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $266.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.92.

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.