Steele Capital Management Inc. Makes New Investment in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Steele Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,157 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $530,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UNP. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $737,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,394 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $342,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC now owns 2,393 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $588,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 5,573 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,369,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Paces Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 1,886 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on UNP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $282.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $252.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.78.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of UNP traded down $1.81 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $240.98. 1,730,332 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,324,740. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $244.27 and a 200-day moving average of $235.33. Union Pacific Co. has a one year low of $190.71 and a one year high of $258.66. The firm has a market cap of $147.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.17, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.19. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 44.34% and a net margin of 26.52%. The firm had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.62%.

Insider Activity

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $937,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 56,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,170,500. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

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.