Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Sells 1,114 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 2.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 50,194 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,114 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $12,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.3% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,312,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,880,701,000 after buying an additional 106,996 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,370,752 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,812,689,000 after acquiring an additional 518,985 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Union Pacific by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,970,669 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,350,924,000 after acquiring an additional 124,571 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 5.7% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,396,974 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,081,348,000 after acquiring an additional 237,083 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 8.3% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,218,730 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $954,530,000 after purchasing an additional 322,129 shares during the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $266.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Union Pacific from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $254.00 to $247.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.80.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Union Pacific stock traded down $1.79 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $238.62. 201,266 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,304,455. The company has a market capitalization of $144.67 billion, a PE ratio of 22.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a fifty day moving average of $242.46 and a 200 day moving average of $238.64. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $215.81 and a 1-year high of $258.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $6.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 27.33%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.51 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 earnings per share for the current year.

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.