Auxano Advisors LLC Takes Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Auxano Advisors LLC bought a new position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,137 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $771,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 130.0% during the 4th quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 129,566 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $31,824,000 after purchasing an additional 73,225 shares during the period. Field & Main Bank raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 6,872 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,688,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Ledyard National Bank lifted its position in Union Pacific by 24.8% during the fourth quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 6,536 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. Steele Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Union Pacific in the fourth quarter worth about $530,000. Finally, Naviter Wealth LLC increased its position in Union Pacific by 24.9% in the fourth quarter. Naviter Wealth LLC now owns 4,491 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,103,000 after buying an additional 896 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Union Pacific from $248.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $282.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com upgraded Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $235.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Union Pacific 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Union Pacific Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE UNP traded down $3.79 on Tuesday, hitting $237.16. 1,732,413 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,317,996. Union Pacific Co. has a 52-week low of $190.71 and a 52-week high of $258.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $244.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $235.56.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.97 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.52% and a return on equity of 44.34%. The firm’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.67 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 49.62%.

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.