Rep. Josh Gottheimer Buys Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares

Representative Josh Gottheimer (D-New Jersey) recently bought shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP). In a filing disclosed on January 14th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $1,001 and $15,000 in Union Pacific stock on December 13th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “MORGAN STANLEY – SELECT UMA ACCOUNT # 1” account.

Representative Josh Gottheimer also recently made the following trade(s):

• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Block (NYSE:SQ) on 12/30/2024.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) on 12/30/2024.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) on 12/27/2024.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Grupo Financiero Banorte (OTCMKTS:GBOOY) on 12/27/2024.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Cadre (NYSE:CDRE) on 12/27/2024.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Coloplast A/S (OTCMKTS:CLPBY) on 12/27/2024.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) on 12/23/2024.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Trane Technologies (NYSE:TT) on 12/23/2024.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Walmart (NYSE:WMT) on 12/20/2024.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) on 12/19/2024.

Union Pacific Price Performance

NYSE UNP opened at $231.00 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $140.05 billion, a PE ratio of 21.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.06. Union Pacific Co. has a 52-week low of $218.55 and a 52-week high of $258.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $234.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $238.87.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by ($0.03). Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. The company had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.51 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.32%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.22%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Union Pacific

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UNP. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,109,829,000 after purchasing an additional 217,780 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,813,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,146,451,000 after acquiring an additional 182,620 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,312,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,880,701,000 after acquiring an additional 106,996 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Union Pacific by 9.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,795,993,000 after acquiring an additional 625,492 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 2.3% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,285,585 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,549,271,000 after purchasing an additional 143,896 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on UNP shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com lowered Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI downgraded Union Pacific from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $254.00 to $247.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Union Pacific from $265.00 to $262.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.80.

About Representative Gottheimer

Josh Gottheimer (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2017. His current term ends on January 3, 2025. Gottheimer (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2024 election. Gottheimer was first elected to the House in 2016. Prior to his election, Gottheimer worked for Microsoft, the Federal Communications Commission, and for the administration of President Bill Clinton (D). Click here for more information about Gottheimer’s career. Gottheimer serves on the House Financial Services Committee, where is a member of three subcommittees. For more on Gottheimer’s committee assignments, click here. Gottheimer became a co-chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus in February 2017. Gottheimer attended the University of Pennsylvania for his undergraduate degree. He became a Thouron Fellow at Oxford and attended Harvard Law School. Gottheimer worked as a speech writer under former President Bill Clinton (D), assisting with two State of the Union addresses, among other projects. Before running for Congress, he worked for Microsoft as a general manager for corporate strategy.

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.