Insider Selling: Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) President Sells 7,500 Shares of Stock

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the president now owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,240,000. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Union Pacific stock traded down $3.59 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $250.83. The company had a trading volume of 1,153,800 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,808,274. The firm has a market cap of $152.07 billion, a PE ratio of 23.03, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.06. 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 Co. has a one year low of $218.55 and a one year high of $258.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $234.45 and a 200 day moving average of $239.81.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.71 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.14%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.22%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Traveka Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 3.4% in the third quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,357 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $335,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Red Mountain Financial LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 2.0% in the third quarter. Red Mountain Financial LLC now owns 2,276 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $561,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 26.8% in the fourth quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 213 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Pflug Koory LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 8,569 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,954,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,409 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $288.00 to $283.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $263.30.

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.