Perpetual Ltd Sells 1,390 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Perpetual Ltd reduced its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 13.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,732 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,390 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,991,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 13.6% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 120,394 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,240,000 after acquiring an additional 14,388 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 179.9% during the 2nd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 8,427 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,907,000 after purchasing an additional 5,416 shares during the period. Sagefield Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 5.1% in the second quarter. Sagefield Capital LP now owns 30,310 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,858,000 after buying an additional 1,473 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 272.3% in the 2nd 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. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 18.5% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 250,193 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $56,609,000 after buying an additional 39,066 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Union Pacific Price Performance

UNP stock opened at $236.73 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $233.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $239.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $143.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.74, a PEG ratio of 2.11 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.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released 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). The business had revenue of $6.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.14 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.51 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors 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 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 49.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on UNP. Barclays boosted their price objective on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Union Pacific from $288.00 to $283.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $259.35.

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.