New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 17,851 Shares of Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

New York State Teachers Retirement System reduced its stake in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 456,642 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 17,851 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $107,936,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new stake in Union Pacific in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Total Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Sagard Holdings Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE:UNP opened at $228.30 on Friday. Union Pacific Corporation has a 52 week low of $204.66 and a 52 week high of $256.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $229.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $227.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market cap of $135.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.99.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $6.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.24 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 42.23% and a net margin of 28.73%.Union Pacific’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.75 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on UNP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $263.00 price target on shares of Union Pacific and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $285.00 price objective (up from $270.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, UBS Group set a $253.00 target price on Union Pacific and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $259.46.

Union Pacific Profile

Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP) is one of the largest freight railroad companies in the United States. Its principal operating subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad, has roots that trace back to the Pacific Railway Act of 1862 and the construction of the first transcontinental rail link completed in 1869. The company is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, and operates as a holding company for rail transportation and related services.

Union Pacific’s core business is the movement of freight by rail across an extensive rail network serving the western two‑thirds of the United States.