Emprise Bank Lowers Stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Emprise Bank lowered its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,560 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 181 shares during the period. Emprise Bank’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,040,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 272.3% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,678,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $379,689,000 after purchasing an additional 1,227,318 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 19,878.6% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 896,040 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $220,856,000 after purchasing an additional 891,555 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 9.3% during 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 in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 2,025.4% during the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 546,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $134,636,000 after purchasing an additional 520,536 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 170.9% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 736,246 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $181,470,000 after purchasing an additional 464,477 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Union Pacific stock traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $225.37. The company had a trading volume of 793,968 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,321,143. The company has a market capitalization of $136.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.70, a P/E/G 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 firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $234.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $238.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.63.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.51 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the topic of several research reports. Susquehanna cut their target price on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays upped 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. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 price target on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Nine investment 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, Union Pacific presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $259.80.

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.