Analysts Set Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Target Price at $257.50

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-three brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation, fifteen have assigned a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $257.50.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on UNP shares. Argus upgraded shares of Union Pacific to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America lifted their price objective 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. Citigroup upgraded shares of Union Pacific from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $260.00 to $244.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $285.00 to $260.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered Union Pacific from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $265.00 to $200.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd.

Institutional Trading of Union Pacific

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 103.5% during the 1st quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 116 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. EnRich Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Union Pacific during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP stock traded down $1.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $221.44. The company had a trading volume of 4,179,597 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,642,700. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $132.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.07. Union Pacific has a one year low of $204.66 and a one year high of $258.07. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $221.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $232.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.73 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.11 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. The business's quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.69 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Union Pacific will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.42%. Union Pacific's payout ratio is presently 48.29%.

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.