Kimelman & Baird LLC Sells 3,000 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Kimelman & Baird LLC lowered its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 102,304 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 3,000 shares during the quarter. Union Pacific makes up 1.9% of Kimelman & Baird LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Kimelman & Baird LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $23,329,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $173,000. TCTC Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 4,519 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,031,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 95,761 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $21,837,000 after acquiring an additional 13,024 shares in the last quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 20,161 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,598,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 6,435 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,468,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on UNP. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $285.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $263.00.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE:UNP opened at $237.71 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a fifty day moving average of $242.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $240.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $143.65 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $218.55 and a fifty-two week high of $258.07.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted 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 net margin of 27.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares in the company, valued at $16,240,000. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total transaction of $1,636,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,632,388. This trade represents a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.