Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) Shares Bought by Financial Counselors Inc.

Financial Counselors Inc. raised its position in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 1.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 269,190 shares of the railroad operator's stock after acquiring an additional 5,114 shares during the quarter. Union Pacific makes up 1.0% of Financial Counselors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Financial Counselors Inc.'s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $63,593,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 46.1% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,211 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $504,000 after acquiring an additional 698 shares in the last quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,503 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $799,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 60.0% during the fourth quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 3,607 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $823,000 after buying an additional 1,352 shares during the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,470 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $335,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 62.9% during the fourth quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 4,634 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,057,000 after buying an additional 1,789 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on UNP shares. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $263.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $230.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $256.63.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP stock traded up $0.51 during trading on Thursday, reaching $237.00. The company had a trading volume of 2,630,094 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,729,528. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.73. Union Pacific Corporation has a twelve month low of $204.66 and a twelve month high of $258.07. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $225.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $231.03. The company has a market cap of $141.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.73 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.11 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.76% and a return on equity of 40.80%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.29%.

Union Pacific 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.