PFW Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 3,388 Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

PFW Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,388 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $773,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,109,829,000 after buying an additional 217,780 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Union Pacific by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,813,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,146,451,000 after acquiring an additional 182,620 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,312,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,880,701,000 after purchasing an additional 106,996 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew 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 acquiring an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in Union Pacific by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,285,585 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,549,271,000 after purchasing an additional 143,896 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on UNP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $266.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $259.80.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP stock traded up $1.39 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $226.60. The company had a trading volume of 2,278,103 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,539,269. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $137.38 billion, a PE ratio of 20.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 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. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $234.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $238.83.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by ($0.03). Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 27.33%. The company had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.14 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.51 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.22%.

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.