Union Pacific Corporation $UNP Shares Sold by Ascent Group LLC

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC reduced its stake in Union Pacific Corporation by 13.1%, holding 13,659 shares valued at $3,143,000 as of its latest SEC filing.
• Union Pacific declared a quarterly dividend of $1.38, increasing from the previous $1.34, representing an annualized yield of 2.3%.
• Analysts have given Union Pacific an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $260.54, noting recent fluctuations including upgrades and downgrades from various firms.

Ascent Group LLC reduced its stake in shares of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,659 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 2,067 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Union Pacific were worth $3,143,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Union Pacific in the first quarter valued at approximately $988,822,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in Union Pacific by 29.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,699,109 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $873,878,000 after purchasing an additional 850,025 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its position in Union Pacific by 61,054.6% in the first quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 625,000 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $147,650,000 after purchasing an additional 623,978 shares during the period. Menora Mivtachim Holdings LTD. purchased a new stake in Union Pacific in the first quarter valued at approximately $115,096,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its position in Union Pacific by 10.8% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,626,200 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,092,893,000 after purchasing an additional 452,788 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lowered Union Pacific from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Baird R W raised Union Pacific to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Argus lowered Union Pacific from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Union Pacific from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $260.54.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE UNP opened at $236.60 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.53. Union Pacific Corporation has a 1 year low of $204.66 and a 1 year high of $256.84. The company has a market capitalization of $140.33 billion, a PE ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a fifty day moving average of $223.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $224.51.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last released 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. 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.74 earnings per share. Union Pacific's revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th were issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. This is an increase from Union Pacific's previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 29th. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio is currently 47.96%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.