National Pension Service Raises Position in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP)

Key Points

• The National Pension Service increased its holdings in Union Pacific Corporation by 9.0%, now owning approximately $299.56 million worth of the stock, equating to about 1,268,048 shares.
• Union Pacific recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.38 per share, representing a 2.5% yield, boosted from the previous $1.34.
• According to analysts, Union Pacific has received a mix of ratings, with targets ranging from $238.00 to $276.00, and currently holds a consensus rating of Moderate Buy.

National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 9.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,268,048 shares of the railroad operator's stock after purchasing an additional 104,643 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned about 0.21% of Union Pacific worth $299,564,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. LGT Group Foundation increased its stake in Union Pacific by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. LGT Group Foundation now owns 5,398 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,275,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC increased its stake in Union Pacific by 9.1% during the 1st quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 125,458 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $29,638,000 after purchasing an additional 10,448 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Union Pacific by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 199,675 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $47,044,000 after purchasing an additional 13,487 shares in the last quarter. Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Union Pacific by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Taylor Hoffman Capital Management LLC now owns 18,891 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $4,480,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trillium Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Union Pacific by 32.2% during the 1st quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 172,734 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $40,806,000 after purchasing an additional 42,069 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lowered shares of Union Pacific from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the company from $270.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $244.00 to $238.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 25th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $238.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $263.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Union Pacific from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $259.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $258.21.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE UNP traded down $1.56 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $221.62. 6,245,623 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,492,426. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $131.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific Corporation has a 1 year low of $204.66 and a 1 year high of $258.07. The business's 50 day moving average is $227.11 and its 200-day moving average is $229.77.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The railroad operator reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $6.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.09 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 28.43% and a return on equity of 41.73%. The company's revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. This is a boost from Union Pacific's previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio is 46.57%.

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.