#2 - Union Pacific Railroad (NYSE:UNP)
Union Pacific Railroad (NYSE: UNP) - Rail companies are considered a bellwether of the broader economy. Although a company like Union Pacific doesn’t reach across every sector, they do tend to point to strengths in the manufacturing and energy sectors. Over the last 20 years, American railroad companies have undergone a "Rail Renaissance" that changed their outlook among investors. Once an industry seen as heavily prone to recessions, they have now become an industry that uses automation that allows the railways to operate safely with lower onboard personnel costs. As a result, UNP – and all Class 1 railroads in the United States – were able to make, and retain, a profit even during the depths of the financial crisis and recession of 2008 and 2009. Union Pacific, the largest publicly quoted railroad, operates throughout the western United States and is able to generate a return on invested capital (ROIC) of about 14% that figures to stay intact because of the territorial nature of railroads. In their Q4 2018 earnings report, they beat the consensus estimate of analysts of a $2.06 EPS by earning $2.12 per share. UNP currently offers a 2.1 dividend yield and has demonstrated a 5-year dividend growth rate of 14%.
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.
Read More - Current Price
- $243.52
- Consensus Rating
- Moderate Buy
- Ratings Breakdown
- 12 Buy Ratings, 6 Hold Ratings, 0 Sell Ratings.
- Consensus Price Target
- $255.00 (4.7% Upside)
