BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Has $113.48 Million Stock Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 13.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 501,544 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 60,986 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. owned about 0.08% of Union Pacific worth $113,479,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Union Pacific in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 211.4% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Cultivar Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on UNP shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Union Pacific from $281.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Loop Capital downgraded Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $276.00 to $238.00 in a report on Monday, June 17th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $266.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Seven 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.79.

Union Pacific Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE UNP traded up $2.88 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $256.08. 2,386,553 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,260,287. The company’s fifty day moving average is $237.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $239.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.05. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $199.33 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66. The stock has a market cap of $156.00 billion, a PE ratio of 24.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.03. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 42.62% and a net margin of 26.90%. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This is an increase from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.62%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total value of $875,887.68. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares in the company, valued at $16,014,787.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Company 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.