SageView Advisory Group LLC Buys 1,379 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

SageView Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 49.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,146 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,379 shares during the quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,023,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,856,266 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,438,417,000 after purchasing an additional 113,946 shares in the last quarter. True Vision MN LLC acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,359,000. Slagle Financial LLC boosted its position in Union Pacific by 97.7% during the fourth quarter. Slagle Financial LLC now owns 17,278 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,244,000 after acquiring an additional 8,537 shares during the last quarter. Vima LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $68,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE UNP opened at $221.38 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $199.06 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $135.07 billion, a PE ratio of 21.12, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.05. The business’s 50-day moving average is $235.00 and its 200 day moving average is $240.84.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.19. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.52% and a return on equity of 44.34%. The company had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.67 earnings per share. Union Pacific’s quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is currently 49.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on UNP. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Union Pacific in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $259.75.

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.