Blair William & Co. IL Decreases Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Blair William & Co. IL trimmed its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 556,630 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 41,506 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL owned about 0.09% of Union Pacific worth $126,934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at $1,035,905,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 74.7% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,146,990 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $489,600,000 after purchasing an additional 918,248 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 9.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 33,228.4% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 504,258 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $114,991,000 after purchasing an additional 502,745 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 35.8% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,226,100 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $279,600,000 after buying an additional 323,525 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark boosted 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. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $285.00 target price (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $263.00.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UNP opened at $238.04 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $143.84 billion, a PE ratio of 21.46, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $243.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $239.72. Union Pacific Co. has a 52-week low of $218.55 and a 52-week high of $258.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $2.71 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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 value of $1,636,740.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,319 shares in the company, 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 the SEC website. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,875,000.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,240,000. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

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.