American Trust Lowers Stock Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

American Trust reduced its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 9.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,834 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 302 shares during the quarter. American Trust’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $641,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Union Pacific during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Union Pacific by 211.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Cultivar Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the second quarter worth $28,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total value of $875,887.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares in the company, valued at $16,014,787.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on UNP. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $290.00 to $273.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $266.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $276.00 to $238.00 in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Bank of America cut their price target on Union Pacific from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut shares of Union Pacific from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and cut their price target for the company from $254.00 to $247.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.79.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP opened at $245.50 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The business’s 50 day moving average is $245.99 and its 200-day moving average is $238.83. The stock has a market cap of $149.56 billion, a PE ratio of 23.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $199.33 and a twelve month high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.03. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 42.62% and a net margin of 26.90%. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.57 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were given a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.15%.

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.