Churchill Financial Advisors LLC Acquires New Position in Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Churchill Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 2,010 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $465,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Main Street Research LLC acquired a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at about $542,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 2,557.1% during the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 4,145 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $959,000 after purchasing an additional 3,989 shares during the period. Allen Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 7,252 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,678,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the period. Wealthquest Corp acquired a new position in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter valued at about $247,000. Finally, First National Trust Co boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. First National Trust Co now owns 39,759 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $9,197,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Union Pacific Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:UNP opened at $265.65 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $253.79 and a 200-day moving average of $243.99. The firm has a market cap of $157.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.99. Union Pacific Corporation has a twelve month low of $210.84 and a twelve month high of $276.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $6.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.12 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 29.20% and a return on equity of 39.58%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.70 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Corporation will post 12.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.47%.

Insider Transactions at Union Pacific

In other news, EVP Eric J. Gehringer sold 1,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.93, for a total value of $469,625.07. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Kenyatta G. Rocker sold 27,387 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.76, for a total transaction of $7,442,691.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 61,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,605,079.52. This represents a 30.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 31,386 shares of company stock valued at $8,461,716. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on UNP shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $285.00 target price (up from $278.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $307.00 target price (up from $285.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $267.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird set a $311.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $267.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $280.47.

Union Pacific Company 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.