West Family Investments Inc. Increases Holdings in Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

West Family Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 52.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,823 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 976 shares during the period. West Family Investments Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in Union Pacific by 10.6% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 93,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $21,475,000 after buying an additional 8,925 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 26.4% during the second quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 23,875 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,494,000 after acquiring an additional 4,980 shares in the last quarter. LGT Group Foundation raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 5,398 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,275,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Union Pacific in the 1st quarter worth approximately $988,822,000. Finally, Markel Group Inc. boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 13.4% in the 2nd quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 97,278 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $22,382,000 after purchasing an additional 11,500 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on UNP shares. Loop Capital upgraded Union Pacific from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $214.00 to $227.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, October 24th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $258.00 to $257.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and set a $272.00 target price (up from $257.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $261.63.

Union Pacific Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of UNP opened at $232.45 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The firm has a market cap of $137.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.75, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.04. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $225.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $225.18. Union Pacific Corporation has a 12 month low of $204.66 and a 12 month high of $256.84.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $6.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.24 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 28.73% and a return on equity of 42.23%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.75 EPS. Analysts predict that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be issued a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is presently 46.90%.

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.