Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $258.78.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UNP. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $280.00 price objective (up from $275.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $198.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $266.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Union Pacific from $282.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday.

Insider Activity at Union Pacific

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $937,500.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 56,682 shares in the company, valued at $14,170,500. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UNP. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 211.4% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Union Pacific Price Performance

UNP opened at $240.98 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.93. Union Pacific has a 1-year low of $190.71 and a 1-year high of $258.66. The company has a 50-day moving average of $244.15 and a 200-day moving average of $235.56. The company has a market capitalization of $147.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.99, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.07.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.19. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 44.34% and a net margin of 26.52%. The firm had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.67 earnings per share. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Union Pacific will post 11.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is currently 49.62%.

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.