Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Acquired by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 38.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 372,696 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 103,267 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned about 0.06% of Union Pacific worth $84,990,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 111.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 129 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. PrairieView Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. 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 research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $263.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the president now owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,240,000. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at $6,632,388. This represents a 19.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE UNP opened at $236.24 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $242.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $240.35. Union Pacific Co. has a 12 month low of $218.55 and a 12 month high of $258.07. The company has a market capitalization of $142.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.30, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company posted $2.71 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors 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 2.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is 48.33%.

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.