Pecaut & CO. Decreases Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Pecaut & CO. reduced its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 10.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,888 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 599 shares during the quarter. Pecaut & CO.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,106,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new position in Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 211.4% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Cultivar Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Union Pacific in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction on 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 approximately $16,014,787.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on UNP. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Daiwa America lowered Union Pacific from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Union Pacific from $281.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $259.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Eight investment 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $258.79.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE:UNP opened at $247.47 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $242.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $239.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The stock has a market cap of $150.99 billion, a PE ratio of 23.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $199.33 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.03. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.90% and a return on equity of 42.62%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This is a boost from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is currently 51.15%.

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.