Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD. Sells 18,589 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD. reduced its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 81.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,291 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 18,589 shares during the period. Capital Group Investment Management PTE. LTD.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,055,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Union Pacific by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $737,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Union Pacific by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,394 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $342,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its stake in Union Pacific by 0.6% during the first quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 7,037 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,731,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP lifted its position in Union Pacific by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 7,838 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,925,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Berkeley Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,100 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,007,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Union Pacific Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of UNP traded up $5.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $240.36. 2,786,994 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,313,676. The company has a market capitalization of $146.65 billion, a PE ratio of 23.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99. The business has a 50 day moving average of $229.99 and a 200 day moving average of $238.99. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $199.33 and a 1-year high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.70 by $0.04. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.52% and a return on equity of 44.34%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.57 EPS. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.14 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on UNP. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $280.00 price target (up previously from $275.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Union Pacific from $281.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.75.

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.