Berkshire Bank Has $3.63 Million Stock Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Berkshire Bank lowered its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 15,903 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 199 shares during the quarter. Union Pacific comprises approximately 0.8% of Berkshire Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Berkshire Bank’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $3,627,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Union Pacific by 0.9% during the third 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 increased its stake in Union Pacific by 1.4% in the third 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 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 valued at $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $1,549,271,000 after purchasing an additional 143,896 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,020,107 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,237,356,000 after purchasing an additional 31,899 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $288.00 to $283.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $263.30.

Union Pacific Trading Up 2.2 %

UNP opened at $254.19 on Tuesday. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $218.55 and a twelve month high of $258.66. The company has a fifty day moving average of $234.05 and a 200-day moving average of $239.63. The stock has a market cap of $154.10 billion, a PE ratio of 23.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 27.33%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.71 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.96 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.22%.

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.