Ameriprise Financial Inc. Decreases Stake in Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Ameriprise Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 4.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,104,354 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 335,761 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,634,614,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. boosted its position in Union Pacific by 92.0% in the second quarter. CTC Alternative Strategies Ltd. now owns 4,800 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,300 shares during the last quarter. Gould Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Gould Capital LLC now owns 13,212 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,040,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 2nd quarter worth about $7,055,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 930,774 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $214,152,000 after buying an additional 11,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Union Pacific during the second quarter valued at about $63,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Union Pacific from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Union Pacific from $258.00 to $257.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Loop Capital raised Union Pacific from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the company from $214.00 to $227.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Union Pacific from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $259.54.

Union Pacific Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE UNP opened at $239.90 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The company has a market cap of $142.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.99. Union Pacific Corporation has a 52 week low of $204.66 and a 52 week high of $256.84. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $226.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $225.78.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.09. Union Pacific had a net margin of 28.73% and a return on equity of 42.23%. The firm had revenue of $6.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.75 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be issued a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.90%.

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.