Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC Grows Stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,324 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $2,781,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $737,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,394 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $342,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC now owns 2,393 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $588,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 7,838 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,925,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Berkeley Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,100 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,007,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNP has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on Union Pacific from $235.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Union Pacific from $198.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Union Pacific from $248.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.78.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.3 %

Union Pacific stock traded down $0.76 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $242.79. 2,255,458 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,120,671. The company has a market cap of $148.13 billion, a PE ratio of 23.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $244.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $234.95. Union Pacific Co. has a 12 month low of $190.45 and a 12 month high of $258.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.97 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.52% and a return on equity of 44.34%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.67 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 49.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $937,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 56,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,170,500. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

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.