Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG Has $632,000 Stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG reduced its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,771 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 86 shares during the quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $632,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UNP. Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 74.7% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,146,990 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $489,600,000 after purchasing an additional 918,248 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Union Pacific by 19,878.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 896,040 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $220,856,000 after buying an additional 891,555 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,795,993,000 after acquiring an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its position in Union Pacific by 2,025.4% in the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 546,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $134,636,000 after acquiring an additional 520,536 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 170.9% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 736,246 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $181,470,000 after acquiring an additional 464,477 shares during the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Union Pacific from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $261.40.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE:UNP opened at $249.27 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $151.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $236.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $240.44. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $218.55 and a 1 year high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 12.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total value of $1,636,740.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,632,388. The trade was a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,240,000. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

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.