Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Sold by Lecap Asset Management Ltd.

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 84.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,977 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 16,073 shares during the quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $679,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 19,878.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 896,040 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $220,856,000 after acquiring an additional 891,555 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in 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 during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 2,025.4% during the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 546,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $134,636,000 after purchasing an additional 520,536 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 170.9% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 736,246 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $181,470,000 after buying an additional 464,477 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake 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 buying an additional 323,525 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total value 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 approximately $6,632,388. This represents a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,875,000.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,240,000. This 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on UNP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $288.00 to $283.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $261.40.

Union Pacific Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of Union Pacific stock opened at $242.12 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $235.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $240.17. The stock has a market cap of $146.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.83, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.06. Union Pacific Co. has a 12-month low of $218.55 and a 12-month high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.71 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 12.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

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.