Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) Sees Large Volume Increase - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Union Pacific's trading volume saw a decline, with approximately 2.45 million shares traded, down 23% from the previous session.
• Equities analysts have mixed ratings on Union Pacific, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $259.46.
• The company has recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.38, representing an annualized yield of 2.48%.

Shares of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) saw unusually-high trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 2,446,657 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 23% from the previous session's volume of 3,157,296 shares.The stock last traded at $224.89 and had previously closed at $229.24.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UNP. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Union Pacific from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $259.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $257.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley cut 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. Finally, Stephens cut their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $258.21.

Union Pacific Trading Down 0.8%

The stock has a market cap of $130.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $227.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $230.93.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The railroad operator reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.09 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.73% and a net margin of 28.43%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.74 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a $1.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. 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 2.5%. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.57%.

Institutional Trading of Union Pacific

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brookwood Investment Group LLC lifted its position in Union Pacific by 9.6% in the second quarter. Brookwood Investment Group LLC now owns 1,773 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $408,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Yukon Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.6% during the second quarter. Yukon Wealth Management Inc. now owns 13,679 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $3,147,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 5.5% during the second quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,633 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,526,000 after buying an additional 344 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 19.8% during the second quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 37,176 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $8,553,000 after buying an additional 6,150 shares during the period. Finally, Solstein Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 6.9% during the second quarter. Solstein Capital LLC now owns 2,145 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $494,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company's stock.

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.