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

Tectonic Advisors LLC raised its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 6.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,053 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $924,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 19,878.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 896,040 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $220,856,000 after acquiring an additional 891,555 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2,025.4% during the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 546,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $134,636,000 after purchasing an additional 520,536 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 170.9% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 736,246 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $181,470,000 after buying an additional 464,477 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Union Pacific by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,226,100 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $279,600,000 after buying an additional 323,525 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNP opened at $244.27 on Thursday. Union Pacific Co. has a 52 week low of $218.55 and a 52 week high of $258.66. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $235.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $240.12. The company has a market cap of $148.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.03, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.71 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 12.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.33%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total value of $1,636,740.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at $6,632,388. The trade was a 19.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the president now owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,240,000. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Guggenheim increased their price objective on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $261.40.

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.