Sweeney & Michel LLC Invests $646,000 in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Sweeney & Michel LLC bought a new position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,638 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $646,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UNP. Silver Oak Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth about $219,000. Allegheny Financial Group LTD boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 22.5% during the fourth quarter. Allegheny Financial Group LTD now owns 10,885 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,674,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth about $238,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the first quarter worth about $1,088,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,273,959 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $558,542,000 after buying an additional 222,318 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on UNP shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $281.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $198.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $248.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $258.79.

Union Pacific Trading Up 1.4 %

UNP traded up $3.28 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $245.43. 1,835,720 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,309,133. 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 Co. has a 1 year low of $199.33 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $230.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $239.10. The firm has a market cap of $149.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.07.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.90% and a return on equity of 42.62%. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This is an increase from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is 49.62%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Whited Elizabeth 3,553 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

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.