Baird Financial Group Inc. Purchases 61,835 Shares of Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group increased its Union Pacific stake by 3% in the second quarter, purchasing 61,835 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 2.14 million shares valued at approximately $581.6 million.
• Union Pacific reported quarterly earnings of $3.41 per share, surpassing estimates, while revenue rose 11.5% year over year to $6.86 billion. The company also raised its quarterly dividend from $1.38 to $1.42 per share.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $320.89, compared with a recent price of $288.68.

Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 3.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,138,390 shares of the railroad operator's stock after buying an additional 61,835 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned 0.36% of Union Pacific worth $581,642,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 40.4% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,312 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 665 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 20,606 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $4,741,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC grew its position in Union Pacific by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,733 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $859,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC grew its position in Union Pacific by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 6,091 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,401,000 after acquiring an additional 554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in Union Pacific by 7.4% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,528,426 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $351,660,000 after purchasing an additional 105,664 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Union Pacific stock opened at $288.68 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $171.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.37, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.96. The firm's 50-day moving average is $294.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $271.35. Union Pacific Corporation has a 1 year low of $210.84 and a 1 year high of $315.99.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $6.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 28.85% and a return on equity of 38.46%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.03 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Union Pacific Corporation will post 13.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be issued a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from Union Pacific's previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on UNP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $304.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Stephens upgraded shares of Union Pacific to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Erste Group Bank began coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $350.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $320.89.

About Union Pacific

Union Pacific Corporation is a transportation company that operates Union Pacific Railroad, one of the largest freight railroad networks in the United States. The company provides rail transportation and logistics services for a broad range of commodities, including agricultural products, automotive goods, chemicals, coal, industrial products, and intermodal shipments.

Union Pacific's railroad network serves the western two-thirds of the United States, connecting major markets and ports across approximately 23 states.

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