Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Acquires 10,427 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 2.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 427,918 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 10,427 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned about 0.07% of Union Pacific worth $96,821,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of UNP. Chesapeake Wealth Management lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 8,202 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,856,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 13.6% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 120,394 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,240,000 after buying an additional 14,388 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Union Pacific by 25.5% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 52,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $11,843,000 after purchasing an additional 10,646 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its stake in Union Pacific by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 124,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $28,212,000 after buying an additional 3,812 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 3,276 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $741,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Union Pacific Stock Down 1.2 %

Union Pacific stock opened at $245.39 on Friday. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $199.33 and a fifty-two week 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 company has a market capitalization of $149.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.42, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $245.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $239.17.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.57 EPS. Union Pacific’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 51.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the firm’s 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 in the company, valued at approximately $16,014,787.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays cut their price objective on Union Pacific from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $290.00 to $273.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Daiwa America lowered Union Pacific from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $275.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $258.79.

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.