Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) Trading Down 0.6% Following Analyst Downgrade

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) traded down 0.6% during trading on Monday after BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on the stock from $280.00 to $275.00. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Union Pacific traded as low as $243.11 and last traded at $243.93. 746,694 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 67% from the average session volume of 2,274,273 shares. The stock had previously closed at $245.39.

UNP has been the topic of several other reports. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $276.00 to $238.00 in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Union Pacific from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Daiwa America downgraded Union Pacific from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $258.79.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total transaction of $875,887.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,014,787.55. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Union Pacific during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 211.4% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Cultivar Capital Inc. bought a new position in Union Pacific in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Union Pacific during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.6 %

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $245.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $238.99. The company has a market cap of $148.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 42.62% and a net margin of 26.90%. Union Pacific’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.57 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a $1.34 dividend. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 51.15%.

Union Pacific Company 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.