FourThought Financial Partners LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

FourThought Financial Partners LLC lowered its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,605 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 201 shares during the period. FourThought Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,131,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of UNP. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in Union Pacific by 108.9% during the 3rd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,128,575 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $840,702,000 after purchasing an additional 2,151,893 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 62.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,496,708 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,119,295,000 after buying an additional 2,119,382 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 65.5% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,348,496 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $478,224,000 after buying an additional 929,495 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 331.7% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 1,143,298 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $280,817,000 after acquiring an additional 878,490 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 20,736.8% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 803,677 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $197,399,000 after acquiring an additional 799,820 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $937,500.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 56,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,170,500. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on UNP. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $271.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Union Pacific from $248.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Union Pacific from $282.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $259.61.

Union Pacific Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:UNP traded up $2.67 on Friday, hitting $240.36. 2,174,714 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,177,795. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $242.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $236.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.06. Union Pacific Co. has a 12 month low of $190.71 and a 12 month high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.97 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.52% and a return on equity of 44.34%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.67 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is currently 49.62%.

Union Pacific 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.