First County Bank CT Cuts Stock Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

First County Bank CT lessened its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 7.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 8,043 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 659 shares during the quarter. Union Pacific makes up about 1.0% of First County Bank CT’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. First County Bank CT’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,834,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of UNP. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the second quarter worth $28,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Union Pacific by 3,250.0% during the second quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 134 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Union Pacific in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 265.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 128 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of UNP traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $230.51. The stock had a trading volume of 1,115,639 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,251,211. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $234.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $238.70. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $218.55 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66.

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

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on UNP. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Union Pacific from $265.00 to $262.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Union Pacific from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $254.00 to $247.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $260.30.

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.