Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) Downgraded by Evercore ISI to “Inline”

Evercore ISI lowered shares of Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) from an outperform rating to an inline rating in a report published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat reports. Evercore ISI currently has $247.00 price target on the railroad operator’s stock, down from their previous price target of $254.00.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on Union Pacific from $290.00 to $273.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a buy rating to a hold rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $276.00 to $238.00 in a research note on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Union Pacific from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped 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. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $258.11.

Union Pacific Price Performance

NYSE UNP opened at $244.22 on Wednesday. Union Pacific has a 1 year low of $199.33 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $245.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $238.89. 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 company has a market cap of $148.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.90% and a return on equity of 42.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.57 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Union Pacific will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. This is a boost from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is 51.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total transaction of $875,887.68. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 64,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,014,787.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Union Pacific

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 9258 Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,124 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $767,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in Union Pacific by 86.8% in the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,589 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $594,000 after buying an additional 1,203 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 27.1% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,570 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,614,000 after buying an additional 1,399 shares during the period. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth $754,000. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. ADV acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the fourth quarter valued at $3,298,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.