Union Pacific Corporation $UNP Shares Bought by Nicholas Company Inc.

Nicholas Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 23.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 47,431 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,025 shares during the quarter. Nicholas Company Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $10,972,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Rachor Investment Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. High Point Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in Union Pacific in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Saranac Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in Union Pacific in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC raised its position in Union Pacific by 48.4% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 135 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $277.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $289.00 target price (up from $273.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $274.00 target price (up from $253.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Union Pacific from $289.00 to $293.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $310.00 price objective on Union Pacific in a report on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $279.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Union Pacific news, CFO Jennifer L. Hamann sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.70, for a total transaction of $549,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 114,642 shares in the company, valued at $31,492,157.40. This represents a 1.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Eric J. Gehringer sold 1,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.93, for a total value of $469,625.07. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 31,386 shares of company stock worth $8,461,716 in the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNP opened at $264.38 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $252.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $240.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.73. Union Pacific Corporation has a 1-year low of $210.84 and a 1-year high of $274.79. The company has a market cap of $156.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.99.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.93 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.70 EPS. Union Pacific’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Union Pacific Corporation will post 12.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.