Objective Capital Management LLC Has $200,000 Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Objective Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 14.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 813 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 142 shares during the quarter. Objective Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $200,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Claro Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at about $245,000. Patten & Patten Inc. TN boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 6,487 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,593,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 2,817 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $692,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Union Pacific by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,280 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,051,000 after buying an additional 878 shares during the period. Finally, Trust Point Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,361,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on UNP. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $198.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Loop Capital downgraded Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $276.00 to $238.00 in a research report on Monday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.79.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Whited Elizabeth 3,553 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total transaction of $875,887.68. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,014,787.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Whited Elizabeth 3,553 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The disclosure for this trade can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of UNP traded down $4.50 on Friday, hitting $239.97. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,114,653 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,386,958. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $230.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $239.20. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $199.33 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66. The company has a market capitalization of $146.19 billion, a PE ratio of 22.90, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 42.62% and a net margin of 26.90%. The business’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.62%.

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.