Scott & Selber Inc. Sells 453 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Scott & Selber Inc. lessened its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,374 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 453 shares during the quarter. Scott & Selber Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $2,138,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 74.7% in the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,146,990 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $489,600,000 after purchasing an additional 918,248 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 9.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 520,536 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 33,228.4% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 504,258 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $114,991,000 after buying an additional 502,745 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 170.9% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 736,246 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $181,470,000 after buying an additional 464,477 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total value of $1,636,740.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,632,388. This represents a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,240,000. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on UNP. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $285.00 target price (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $265.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $261.40.

Union Pacific Trading Down 0.5 %

UNP stock opened at $245.50 on Tuesday. Union Pacific Co. has a one year low of $218.55 and a one year high of $258.07. The stock has a market cap of $148.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $239.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $240.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.71 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.33%.

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.