Mutual Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Mutual Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 36.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,972 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,478 shares during the period. Mutual Advisors LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $3,047,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,109,829,000 after acquiring an additional 217,780 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,813,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,146,451,000 after purchasing an additional 182,620 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,312,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,880,701,000 after purchasing an additional 106,996 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 9.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 2.3% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,285,585 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,549,271,000 after buying an additional 143,896 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James boosted their target price on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.35.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Union Pacific stock opened at $247.83 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79. The firm has a market cap of $150.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.06. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $218.55 and a 1-year high of $258.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $233.54 and a 200-day moving average of $239.16.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 27.33%. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.71 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.96 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.