Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty-six research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $257.13.

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 7th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $245.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Baird R W raised shares of Union Pacific to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Stephens lowered their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $230.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th.

Institutional Trading of Union Pacific

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at $1,927,377,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 1st quarter valued at $988,822,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 27,502.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,491,151 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $588,510,000 after purchasing an additional 2,482,126 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,430,581 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $3,282,305,000 after purchasing an additional 1,616,895 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,395,364 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $2,370,559,000 after purchasing an additional 1,298,178 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of UNP opened at $231.09 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $227.14 and a 200-day moving average of $231.18. The company has a market cap of $138.07 billion, a PE ratio of 20.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific has a one year low of $204.66 and a one year high of $258.07.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.11 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.76% and a return on equity of 40.80%. Union Pacific's revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.69 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Union Pacific will post 11.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.39%. This is an increase from Union Pacific's previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. Union Pacific's payout ratio is currently 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.

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