Means Investment CO. Inc. Boosts Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Means Investment CO. Inc. boosted its position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 2.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,550 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Union Pacific by 1.3% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,312,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,880,701,000 after acquiring an additional 106,996 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 7.6% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,370,752 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,812,689,000 after purchasing an additional 518,985 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 2.1% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,970,669 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,350,924,000 after purchasing an additional 124,571 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 5.7% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,396,974 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,081,348,000 after purchasing an additional 237,083 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 8.3% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,218,730 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $954,530,000 after purchasing an additional 322,129 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total transaction of $875,887.68. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares in the company, valued at $16,014,787.55. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of Union Pacific stock opened at $244.10 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $246.41 and a 200 day moving average of $238.61. Union Pacific Co. has a 12 month low of $199.97 and a 12 month high of $258.66. The firm has a market cap of $148.93 billion, a PE ratio of 23.29, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.03. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 42.62% and a net margin of 26.90%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on UNP. Barclays cut their price target on Union Pacific from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Union Pacific from $280.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 20th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on Union Pacific in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $264.00 price target for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.25.

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.