Aureus Asset Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Aureus Asset Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 28.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,880 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,168 shares during the period. Aureus Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $710,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of UNP. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 272.3% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,678,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $379,689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227,318 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 19,878.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 896,040 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $220,856,000 after acquiring an additional 891,555 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2,025.4% in the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 546,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $134,636,000 after acquiring an additional 520,536 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 170.9% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 736,246 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $181,470,000 after acquiring an additional 464,477 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 186.4% in the second quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 704,769 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $159,461,000 after acquiring an additional 458,664 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the topic of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Union Pacific from $280.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Raymond James raised their price target on Union Pacific from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.80.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of UNP stock opened at $244.66 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $218.55 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $240.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $238.45. The firm has a market cap of $148.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.47, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.78 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. The business’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.51 EPS. Analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.22%.

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.