AIA Group Ltd Decreases Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

AIA Group Ltd lessened its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 22.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,079 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 591 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $511,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC raised its position in Union Pacific by 39.3% in the 3rd quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 28,052 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 48.3% in the fourth quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 18,512 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,547,000 after acquiring an additional 6,031 shares during the period. Advisor Resource Council purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at about $606,000. Finally, Factory Mutual Insurance Co. increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 184,700 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $45,366,000 after acquiring an additional 19,600 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $937,500.00. Following the completion of 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of UNP stock opened at $232.08 on Friday. Union Pacific Co. has a one year low of $190.37 and a one year high of $258.66. The company’s 50-day moving average is $245.29 and its 200 day moving average is $233.73. The company has a market capitalization of $141.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.81.

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. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 46.87% and a net margin of 26.45%. The firm had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.67 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on UNP. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $231.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $235.00 to $248.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $280.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.48.

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.