Exchange Capital Management Inc. Sells 79 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Exchange Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,083 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 79 shares during the period. Exchange Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,159,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 103.1% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 35,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $8,770,000 after acquiring an additional 18,060 shares in the last quarter. abrdn plc grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 415,874 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $94,588,000 after buying an additional 35,414 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 179,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $44,348,000 after buying an additional 4,939 shares in the last quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 24.2% in the 4th quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd now owns 277,267 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $63,185,000 after buying an additional 53,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 61.5% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 10,500 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,394,000 after buying an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $285.00 target price (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays raised their target price on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $261.40.

Union Pacific Price Performance

UNP opened at $242.39 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $237.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $240.74. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $218.55 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66. The firm has a market cap of $146.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other Union Pacific news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,632,388. The trade was a 19.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the president now owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,240,000. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.