Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 3,782 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 41.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,356 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 3,782 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,221,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 4,147 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $20,683,000. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 64,294 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $14,661,000 after acquiring an additional 3,906 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,997 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $683,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 5,814 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,326,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE UNP traded down $1.07 on Friday, reaching $221.44. The company had a trading volume of 4,179,597 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,654,224. The stock has a market capitalization of $132.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.07. The company's fifty day moving average is $221.74 and its 200 day moving average is $232.74. Union Pacific Co. has a 52-week low of $204.66 and a 52-week high of $258.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.69 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on UNP. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $248.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Loop Capital lowered Union Pacific from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $265.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Redburn Atlantic raised Union Pacific from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $259.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Stephens dropped their price target on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Argus raised Union Pacific to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $257.50.

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.