Cable Hill Partners LLC Purchases 201 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Cable Hill Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,013 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 201 shares during the period. Cable Hill Partners LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $687,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 74.7% in the 4th quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,146,990 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $489,600,000 after purchasing an additional 918,248 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,795,993,000 after acquiring an additional 625,492 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2,025.4% during the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 546,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $134,636,000 after purchasing an additional 520,536 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 170.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 736,246 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $181,470,000 after purchasing an additional 464,477 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 35.8% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,226,100 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $279,600,000 after purchasing an additional 323,525 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $285.00 target price (up from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $261.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,632,388. This trade represents a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the president now owns 64,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,240,000. This represents 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 currently owned by insiders.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE:UNP opened at $245.39 on Thursday. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $218.55 and a twelve month high of $258.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The stock has a market cap of $148.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.13, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $238.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $240.83.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is presently 48.33%.

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.