Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC Acquires 387 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 7.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,317 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 387 shares during the period. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,212,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at $1,927,377,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at $1,035,905,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,430,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,282,305,000 after acquiring an additional 1,616,895 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 74.7% during the 4th 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 period. Finally, 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 valued at $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $295.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $261.95.

Union Pacific Trading Down 5.0 %

Union Pacific stock opened at $212.86 on Friday. 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 stock has a market cap of $127.57 billion, a PE ratio of 19.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.06. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $242.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $238.75. Union Pacific Co. has a one year low of $212.55 and a one year high of $258.07.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 period last year, the company posted $2.71 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 48.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,240,000. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $6,632,388. The trade was a 19.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by 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.