Davis Capital Management Purchases 170 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Davis Capital Management grew its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,827 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the quarter. Union Pacific makes up about 1.5% of Davis Capital Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Davis Capital Management’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,785,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 272.3% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,678,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $379,689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227,318 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted 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 valued at $220,856,000 after buying an additional 891,555 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 9.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,795,993,000 after buying an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its holdings 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 valued at $134,636,000 after buying an additional 520,536 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 170.9% during 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. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, October 25th. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Union Pacific from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $254.00 to $247.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.35.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE UNP opened at $236.73 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $233.67 and its 200-day moving average is $239.10. Union Pacific Co. has a 12-month low of $218.55 and a 12-month high of $258.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79. The firm has a market cap of $143.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.78 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $6.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. Union Pacific’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.51 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.22%.

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.