Kestra Investment Management LLC Takes $923,000 Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 3,744 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $923,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of UNP. Cultivar Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Union Pacific in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Union Pacific by 3,250.0% in the second quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 134 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the second quarter valued at $31,000. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America reduced 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 note on Tuesday, September 24th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Daiwa America cut Union Pacific from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Union Pacific from $280.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $259.80.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of UNP opened at $244.66 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $240.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $238.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $218.55 and a twelve month high of $258.66. The company has a market cap of $148.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by ($0.03). Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 27.33%. The business had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 49.22%.

Union Pacific Company 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.