Perennial Investment Advisors LLC Has $436,000 Stock Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Perennial Investment Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 26.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,913 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 694 shares during the quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $436,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 16.4% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 2,860 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $705,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 32.3% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 100,483 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $24,755,000 after purchasing an additional 24,518 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 43.3% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 42,124 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $10,383,000 after purchasing an additional 12,736 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 5.9% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 215,871 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $53,208,000 after purchasing an additional 12,121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 47.7% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 419,509 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $103,400,000 after buying an additional 135,544 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,875,000.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares in the company, valued at $16,240,000. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at $6,632,388. This represents a 19.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $285.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Benchmark upped their price target on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Union Pacific from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $261.95.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of UNP opened at $212.86 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $242.01 and a 200 day moving average of $238.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. Union Pacific Co. has a 12 month low of $212.55 and a 12 month high of $258.07. The company has a market capitalization of $127.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.19, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

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.