Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Purchased by EP Wealth Advisors LLC

EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 3.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 203,750 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 5,992 shares during the quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $46,100,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 211.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Cultivar Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on UNP. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $290.00 to $273.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI downgraded Union Pacific from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $254.00 to $247.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $258.11.

Union Pacific Trading Up 0.4 %

Union Pacific stock opened at $244.22 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $149.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.30, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $199.33 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $245.80 and its 200-day moving average is $238.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS 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 company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.57 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. This is a boost from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is currently 51.15%.

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.