Perpetual Ltd Sells 125 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Perpetual Ltd lowered its position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 1.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 10,122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 125 shares during the quarter. Perpetual Ltd’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $2,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UNP. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 272.3% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,678,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $379,689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227,318 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 35.3% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,118,477 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,012,857,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,625 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 7.6% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,370,752 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,812,689,000 after purchasing an additional 518,985 shares during the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 186.4% in the second quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 704,769 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $159,461,000 after purchasing an additional 458,664 shares during the period. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in Union Pacific during the 1st quarter worth $96,945,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total transaction of $875,887.68. Following the transaction, the president now owns 64,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,014,787.55. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $280.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $259.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.50.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNP opened at $238.84 on Friday. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $199.97 and a twelve month high of $258.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $245.74 and its 200-day moving average is $238.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.43, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.90% and a return on equity of 42.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. This is an increase from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 50.33%.

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.