Elizabeth F. Whited Sells 7,500 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Stock

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Union Pacific Price Performance

UNP traded down $3.59 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $250.83. 1,153,800 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,808,274. The firm has a market capitalization of $152.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $234.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $239.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79. Union Pacific Co. has a one year low of $218.55 and a one year high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.96 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 49.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. StockNews.com cut shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.30.

Institutional Trading of Union Pacific

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UNP. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 891,555 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 9.3% in 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 purchasing an additional 625,492 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 2,025.4% in 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 purchasing an additional 520,536 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 170.9% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 736,246 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $181,470,000 after purchasing an additional 464,477 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,226,100 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $279,600,000 after purchasing an additional 323,525 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% 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.