Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Sold by Legacy Trust

Legacy Trust lowered its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,511 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 110 shares during the quarter. Legacy Trust’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $801,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,109,829,000 after buying an additional 217,780 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Union Pacific by 1.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,813,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,146,451,000 after acquiring an additional 182,620 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Union Pacific by 9.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,795,993,000 after acquiring an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,285,585 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,549,271,000 after purchasing an additional 143,896 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,020,107 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,237,356,000 after purchasing an additional 31,899 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total transaction of $1,636,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,632,388. This represents a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,875,000.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,240,000. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of Union Pacific stock opened at $249.67 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $151.37 billion, a PE ratio of 22.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.06. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $218.55 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $234.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $239.94.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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. Equities analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.22%.

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.