Wasatch Advisors LP Decreases Stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Wasatch Advisors LP reduced its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 10.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 20,900 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,500 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $5,140,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 211.4% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Benchmark raised their price objective 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. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $248.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $280.00 price objective (up from $275.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.92.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Union Pacific stock traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $225.50. 1,530,522 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,304,113. Union Pacific Co. has a 12-month low of $199.33 and a 12-month high of $258.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $137.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $233.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $240.20.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.97 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.67 EPS. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.22 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 31st. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 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.