Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Bought by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 105,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,476 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $25,959,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of UNP. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 90,390.6% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,697,556 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,836,353,000 after purchasing an additional 13,682,419 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Union Pacific by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,983,932 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,860,303,000 after purchasing an additional 883,963 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Union Pacific by 0.3% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,261,449 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,478,649,000 after purchasing an additional 19,145 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Union Pacific by 4.4% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,803,796 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,385,457,000 after purchasing an additional 285,988 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Union Pacific in the fourth quarter worth about $1,276,498,000. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Union Pacific Price Performance

UNP stock traded up $0.58 on Thursday, hitting $229.81. 1,570,164 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,297,764. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $190.37 and a 1-year high of $258.66. The stock has a market cap of $140.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $246.02 and a 200-day moving average of $233.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.56 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $6.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.45% and a return on equity of 46.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.67 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.71%.

Insider Transactions at Union Pacific

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $937,500.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 56,682 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,170,500. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Union Pacific from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $280.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Raymond James lifted their price target on Union Pacific from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Benchmark lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $266.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $231.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.48.

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.