Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Receives $257.50 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-three brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation, fifteen have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $257.50.

UNP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Loop Capital downgraded Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $265.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Argus upgraded Union Pacific to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Union Pacific from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $259.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $248.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Union Pacific

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,430,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,282,305,000 after buying an additional 1,616,895 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,395,364 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,370,559,000 after acquiring an additional 1,298,178 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at $1,927,377,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,686,387 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,752,804,000 after acquiring an additional 363,937 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Union Pacific by 2.0% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,105,382 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,678,575,000 after purchasing an additional 142,732 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Union Pacific stock opened at $221.44 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $132.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.97, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $221.74 and its 200 day moving average is $232.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. Union Pacific has a 52-week low of $204.66 and a 52-week high of $258.07.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.73 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.11 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.69 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Union Pacific will post 11.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.29%.

Union Pacific Company Profile

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.