Brokerages Set Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Price Target at $259.80

Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $259.80.

UNP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairhaven Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Fairhaven Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $584,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management grew its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.5% in the second quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 8,202 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,856,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Traveka Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 3.4% in the third quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,357 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $335,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Red Mountain Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Red Mountain Financial LLC now owns 2,276 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $561,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, True Link Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. True Link Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,016 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $990,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of Union Pacific stock opened at $229.12 on Friday. Union Pacific has a one year low of $218.55 and a one year high of $258.66. The company has a market capitalization of $138.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $234.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $238.44.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by ($0.03). Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. The firm had revenue of $6.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.51 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Union Pacific will post 10.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 49.22%.

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.