Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE Buys Shares of 4,478 Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE bought a new stake in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 4,478 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,086,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of UNP. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,329,262 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $13,724,045,000 after buying an additional 659,378 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,330,080 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,090,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,082,285 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 92.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 20,136,349 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,658,142,000 after acquiring an additional 9,655,306 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,360,668 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,552,550,000 after purchasing an additional 296,814 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,636,050 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,922,971,000 after purchasing an additional 602,647 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on UNP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $311.00 target price on Union Pacific and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $307.00 target price (up from $285.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, April 24th. Raymond James Financial set a $310.00 target price on Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Union Pacific from $256.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Union Pacific presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.11.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP stock opened at $277.79 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $266.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $251.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market cap of $164.93 billion, a PE ratio of 22.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.96. Union Pacific Corporation has a 1-year low of $210.84 and a 1-year high of $279.70.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.07. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 39.58% and a net margin of 29.20%.The company had revenue of $6.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.70 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Corporation will post 12.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.47%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Union Pacific news, EVP Kenyatta G. Rocker sold 27,387 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.76, for a total value of $7,442,691.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 61,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,605,079.52. The trade was a 30.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jennifer L. Hamann sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.70, for a total transaction of $549,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 114,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,492,157.40. This trade represents a 1.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 32,378 shares of company stock worth $8,781,595. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Profile

Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP) is one of the largest freight railroad companies in the United States. Its principal operating subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad, has roots that trace back to the Pacific Railway Act of 1862 and the construction of the first transcontinental rail link completed in 1869. The company is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, and operates as a holding company for rail transportation and related services.

Union Pacific’s core business is the movement of freight by rail across an extensive rail network serving the western two?thirds of the United States.