Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Purchased by Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC

Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 7.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,896 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,575 shares during the period. Union Pacific accounts for approximately 1.0% of Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $5,407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 3.1% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,300,984 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $294,361,000 after buying an additional 39,188 shares in the last quarter. FineMark National Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. FineMark National Bank & Trust now owns 75,452 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $17,072,000 after purchasing an additional 636 shares in the last quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 36,731 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $8,311,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 7,875 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,782,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Consolidated Planning Corp raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 19.4% in the 2nd quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 24,196 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,475,000 after purchasing an additional 3,929 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $290.00 to $273.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 8th. StockNews.com cut Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Barclays reduced their target price on Union Pacific from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. Daiwa America cut Union Pacific from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Eight 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.79.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.8 %

UNP traded down $1.96 on Thursday, hitting $253.74. 431,655 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,255,123. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $239.52 and its 200-day moving average is $239.27. Union Pacific Co. has a 12 month low of $199.33 and a 12 month high of $258.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.05. The company has a market cap of $154.58 billion, a PE ratio of 24.24, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.03. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.90% and a return on equity of 42.62%. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is 51.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total transaction of $875,887.68. Following the transaction, the president now owns 64,945 shares in the company, valued at $16,014,787.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific 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.