WASHINGTON TRUST Co Sells 266 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

WASHINGTON TRUST Co cut its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,956 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 266 shares during the quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $2,937,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 39.3% in the third quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 87,905 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $21,596,000 after buying an additional 28,052 shares during the period. Advisor Resource Council acquired a new position in Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $606,000. EPG Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 11.3% in the third quarter. EPG Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,405 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Finally, Columbia Trust Co 01012016 lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Columbia Trust Co 01012016 now owns 3,577 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $879,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $282.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $239.00 to $237.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $260.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $251.33.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE:UNP traded up $1.36 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $245.99. The company had a trading volume of 923,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,342,911. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $190.37 and a 1-year high of $258.66. The firm has a market cap of $150.00 billion, a PE ratio of 23.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.07. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $247.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $230.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $6.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 46.87% and a net margin of 26.45%. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.67 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is currently 49.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $937,500.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 56,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,170,500. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.