Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 124.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 17,957 shares of the railroad operator's stock after acquiring an additional 9,952 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Union Pacific were worth $4,095,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. PrairieView Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 161 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Benchmark upped their price objective on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $248.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Raymond James reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $257.86.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP traded down $0.64 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $216.20. 2,172,909 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,612,947. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $225.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $233.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $129.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.07. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $204.66 and a 1-year high of $258.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.73 by ($0.03). Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. The company had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.69 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.29%.

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.