High Note Wealth LLC Cuts Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

High Note Wealth LLC decreased its position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 3.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,757 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 109 shares during the quarter. High Note Wealth LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $680,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 272.3% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,678,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $379,689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227,318 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 35.3% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,118,477 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,012,857,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073,625 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 7.6% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 186.4% in the second quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 704,769 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $159,461,000 after acquiring an additional 458,664 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the first quarter worth $96,945,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNP opened at $237.68 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $245.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $238.62. Union Pacific Co. has a one year low of $199.97 and a one year high of $258.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $144.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.68, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.03. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.90% and a return on equity of 42.62%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.57 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.1 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. This is a boost from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total transaction of $875,887.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,014,787.55. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on UNP. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Daiwa America downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.50.

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.