University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. Raises Position in Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. boosted its position in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 1,667.6% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,962 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,851 shares during the period. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $534,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UNP. Ascent Group LLC increased its position in Union Pacific by 8.4% in the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 21,101 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,740,000 after buying an additional 1,628 shares during the last quarter. Old Peak Finance LLC lifted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Old Peak Finance LLC now owns 1,109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $302,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd now owns 1,360 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 10,282 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,797,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 33.2% during the 2nd quarter. Morgan Dempsey Capital Management LLC now owns 17,834 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,851,000 after acquiring an additional 4,447 shares during the period. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $294.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $310.00 price target (up from $286.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $311.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Benchmark upped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $320.89.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of UNP opened at $293.57 on Friday. Union Pacific Corporation has a 52-week low of $210.84 and a 52-week high of $315.99. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $283.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $265.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $174.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.96.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 38.46% and a net margin of 28.85%.The business had revenue of $6.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.03 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Corporation will post 12.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be given a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is an increase from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Eric J. Gehringer sold 2,991 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.96, for a total transaction of $789,504.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 43,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,353,447.52. The trade was a 6.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.