Union Pacific (UNP) Competitors

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) and Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) are both large-cap transportation companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, media sentiment, valuation and earnings.

Which has more risk & volatility, NSC or UNP?

Norfolk Southern has a beta of 1.31, indicating that its share price is 31% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Union Pacific has a beta of 1.05, indicating that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has better valuation & earnings, NSC or UNP?

Union Pacific has higher revenue and earnings than Norfolk Southern. Norfolk Southern is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Union Pacific, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Norfolk Southern	$12.12B	4.71	$2.62B	$14.64	17.30
Union Pacific	$24.25B	5.91	$6.75B	$11.10	21.62

Is NSC or UNP a better dividend stock?

Norfolk Southern pays an annual dividend of $5.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Union Pacific pays an annual dividend of $5.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Norfolk Southern pays out 36.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Union Pacific pays out 48.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Union Pacific has raised its dividend for 18 consecutive years. Union Pacific is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Does the media prefer NSC or UNP?

In the previous week, Union Pacific had 27 more articles in the media than Norfolk Southern. MarketBeat recorded 61 mentions for Union Pacific and 34 mentions for Norfolk Southern. Union Pacific's average media sentiment score of 1.07 beat Norfolk Southern's score of 1.04 indicating that Union Pacific is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Norfolk Southern	19 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	11 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Union Pacific	38 Very Positive mention(s)	6 Positive mention(s)	12 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts rate NSC or UNP?

Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus price target of $267.48, suggesting a potential upside of 5.63%. Union Pacific has a consensus price target of $256.91, suggesting a potential upside of 7.05%. Given Union Pacific's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Union Pacific is more favorable than Norfolk Southern.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Norfolk Southern	1 Sell rating(s)	9 Hold rating(s)	12 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
Union Pacific	1 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	15 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.72

Is NSC or UNP more profitable?

Union Pacific has a net margin of 27.76% compared to Norfolk Southern's net margin of 27.40%. Union Pacific's return on equity of 40.80% beat Norfolk Southern's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Norfolk Southern	27.40%	19.65%	6.30%
Union Pacific	27.76%	40.80%	9.91%

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of NSC or UNP?

75.1% of Norfolk Southern shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.4% of Union Pacific shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of Norfolk Southern shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Union Pacific shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Union Pacific beats Norfolk Southern on 17 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.