Insider Selling: Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) President Sells 3,552 Shares of Stock

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total value of $875,887.68. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,014,787.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of UNP opened at $239.97 on Friday. Union Pacific Co. has a 12 month low of $199.33 and a 12 month high of $258.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $230.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $239.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The firm has a market cap of $146.19 billion, a PE ratio of 22.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 42.62% and a net margin of 26.90%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.57 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a $1.34 dividend. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on UNP shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com cut Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Union Pacific from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Union Pacific from $259.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 price objective on the stock. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.79.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Union Pacific

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS raised its stake in Union Pacific by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 29,085 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,581,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Union Pacific by 12.9% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 283,965 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $63,815,000 after acquiring an additional 32,352 shares during the last quarter. SouthState Corp raised its stake in Union Pacific by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 50,960 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $11,530,000 after acquiring an additional 3,007 shares during the last quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. raised its stake in Union Pacific by 22.3% in the 2nd quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 3,670 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $830,000 after acquiring an additional 669 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Union Pacific by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,896 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,407,000 after acquiring an additional 1,575 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

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.