Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Sold by Argus Investors Counsel Inc.

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 27.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,093 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 1,163 shares during the quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $731,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,430,581 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $3,282,305,000 after buying an additional 1,616,895 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Union Pacific by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,395,364 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $2,370,559,000 after buying an additional 1,298,178 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,927,377,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Union Pacific by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,686,387 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,752,804,000 after buying an additional 363,937 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Union Pacific by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,962,650 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,587,763,000 after buying an additional 920,414 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the subject of several research reports. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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 note on Thursday, March 27th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $245.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Union Pacific from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $259.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $256.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $257.74.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNP traded down $2.32 on Friday, reaching $223.17. 1,670,100 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,685,196. The firm has a market capitalization of $133.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.12, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $204.66 and a fifty-two week high of $258.07. The business's 50-day moving average is $220.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $231.55. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.70 earnings per share 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 return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.69 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.29%.

Union Pacific Company 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.