J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Grows Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,765 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $3,139,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,109,829,000 after acquiring an additional 217,780 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted 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 worth $3,146,451,000 after acquiring an additional 182,620 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 9.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,795,993,000 after acquiring an additional 625,492 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 2.3% in 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 acquiring an additional 143,896 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,020,107 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,237,356,000 after acquiring an additional 31,899 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on UNP shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Union Pacific from $288.00 to $283.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $261.40.

Union Pacific Price Performance

NYSE UNP opened at $249.27 on Monday. Union Pacific Co. has a one year low of $218.55 and a one year high of $258.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $236.34 and a 200 day moving average of $240.45. The company has a market capitalization of $151.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.71 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 12.01 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 48.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.