Donaldson Capital Management LLC Acquires 457 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Donaldson Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 212,706 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 457 shares during the quarter. Union Pacific comprises approximately 1.9% of Donaldson Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Donaldson Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $48,506,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.9% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 182,620 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 625,492 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,305,684 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,437,948,000 after buying an additional 20,099 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,020,107 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,237,356,000 after buying an additional 31,899 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on UNP. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Benchmark lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $265.00 to $200.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $263.00.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE UNP opened at $247.97 on Tuesday. Union Pacific Co. has a 52 week low of $218.55 and a 52 week high of $258.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $241.44 and its 200 day moving average is $240.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $149.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.36, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released 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 return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.71 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

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 $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,240,000. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total value of $1,636,740.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 0.28% 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.