Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Sold by West Branch Capital LLC

West Branch Capital LLC reduced its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,118 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 118 shares during the quarter. West Branch Capital LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $939,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNP. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Union Pacific during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Union Pacific in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 265.7% during the third quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 128 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Union Pacific in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 111.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 129 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Stock Up 1.1 %

NYSE UNP opened at $236.73 on Wednesday. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $218.55 and a twelve month 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 stock has a market cap of $143.52 billion, a PE ratio of 21.74, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $233.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $239.10.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.78 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $6.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 27.33%. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.51 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.96 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on UNP. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Union Pacific from $262.00 to $253.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Union Pacific from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.35.

Union Pacific 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.