Union Pacific Corporation $UNP Shares Sold by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Union Pacific by 21.4%, owning 53,357 shares worth approximately $12.61 million after selling nearly 14,500 shares in Q1.
• Union Pacific's recent earnings report showed a profit of $3.03 per share, surpassing estimates, with a 2.4% revenue increase year-over-year, reaching $6.15 billion.
• The company announced a dividend increase to $1.38 per share, reflecting a positive change from the previous quarterly dividend of $1.34.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 21.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 53,357 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 14,499 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Union Pacific were worth $12,605,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 185,886 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $42,389,000 after acquiring an additional 13,410 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 1,997 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $456,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 101,273 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $23,094,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Voleon Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at about $11,668,000. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at about $675,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNP traded up $1.21 on Monday, hitting $223.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,012,781 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,091,132. Union Pacific Corporation has a 12-month low of $204.66 and a 12-month high of $258.07. The company has a market capitalization of $132.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $227.03 and a 200-day moving average of $227.74.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. Union Pacific had a net margin of 28.43% and a return on equity of 41.73%. The company had revenue of $6.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.74 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a $1.38 dividend. This is a boost from Union Pacific's previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on UNP shares. Baird R W raised shares of Union Pacific to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $270.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $263.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Union Pacific from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $285.00 in a report on Friday, July 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $258.21.

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.