Wellington Shields & Co. LLC Sells 100 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Wellington Shields & Co. LLC trimmed its position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,121 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Union Pacific makes up approximately 1.3% of Wellington Shields & Co. LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $4,132,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,035,905,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 74.7% in the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,146,990 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $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 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2,025.4% in the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 546,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $134,636,000 after purchasing an additional 520,536 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 33,228.4% in 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. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on UNP. Citigroup raised their price target on Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Loop Capital cut shares of Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $265.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $263.00.

Union Pacific Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of UNP stock opened at $237.71 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $242.05 and its 200-day moving average is $240.77. Union Pacific Co. has a 52-week low of $218.55 and a 52-week high of $258.07. The stock has a market cap of $143.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.43, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share (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 quarter last year, the firm posted $2.71 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is presently 48.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of Union Pacific 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 directly 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total transaction of $1,636,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at $6,632,388. This trade represents a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

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.