Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) Price Target Raised to $210.00 at Morgan Stanley

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) had its price target upped by Morgan Stanley from $198.00 to $210.00 in a report released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the railroad operator's stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Benchmark increased their price target on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $266.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Union Pacific from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $280.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Friday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $258.78.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE UNP traded down $0.71 on Friday, reaching $242.84. The company had a trading volume of 2,255,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,333,368. The firm has a market capitalization of $148.16 billion, a PE ratio of 23.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.07. Union Pacific has a 1 year low of $190.45 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $244.34 and a 200-day moving average of $234.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.97 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 46.87% and a net margin of 26.45%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.67 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Union Pacific will post 11.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. Union Pacific's payout ratio is 49.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $937,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 56,682 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,170,500. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Union Pacific

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at $1,832,127,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Union Pacific by 0.3% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,261,449 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,478,649,000 after buying an additional 19,145 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 23.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,851,767 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,682,931,000 after buying an additional 1,285,144 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Union Pacific by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,803,796 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,385,457,000 after purchasing an additional 285,988 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,867,842 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,441,260,000 after acquiring an additional 125,522 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.