Certuity LLC Purchases 607 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Certuity LLC increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 53.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,747 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 607 shares during the period. Certuity LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 103.1% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 35,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $8,770,000 after buying an additional 18,060 shares in the last quarter. abrdn plc increased its position in Union Pacific by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 415,874 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $94,588,000 after acquiring an additional 35,414 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 179,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $44,348,000 after acquiring an additional 4,939 shares during the last quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 24.2% during the fourth quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd now owns 277,267 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $63,185,000 after purchasing an additional 53,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pensionfund Sabic increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 61.5% in the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 10,500 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,394,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of UNP opened at $248.49 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $150.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.41, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $235.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $240.31. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $218.55 and a 1-year high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 period in the previous year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 12.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Union Pacific from $288.00 to $283.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $285.00 target price (up from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $261.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Union Pacific news, 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 transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares in the company, 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 at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,632,388. The trade was a 19.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.