Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, thirteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $258.63.

Several analysts have commented on UNP shares. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $276.00 to $238.00 in a report on Monday, June 17th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $248.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, June 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 price objective for the company.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Union Pacific

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $737,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,394 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $342,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 7,037 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,731,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC now owns 2,393 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mission Wealth Management LP increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 7,838 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,925,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP stock opened at $228.66 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99. The company has a market capitalization of $139.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.06. Union Pacific has a 12 month low of $199.33 and a 12 month high of $258.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $231.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $239.30.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.97 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.52% and a return on equity of 44.34%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.67 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Union Pacific will post 11.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.62%.

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.