Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Has $28.86 Million Stock Position in Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lowered its stake in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 25.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 124,774 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 42,021 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $28,863,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,329,262 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $13,724,045,000 after acquiring an additional 659,378 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,330,080 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,090,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,082,285 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 92.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 20,136,349 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,658,142,000 after acquiring an additional 9,655,306 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,360,668 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,552,550,000 after acquiring an additional 296,814 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Union Pacific by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,636,050 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,922,971,000 after acquiring an additional 602,647 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Union Pacific

In other news, CFO Jennifer L. Hamann sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.70, for a total transaction of $549,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 114,642 shares in the company, valued at $31,492,157.40. The trade was a 1.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Eric J. Gehringer sold 2,991 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.96, for a total value of $789,504.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 43,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,353,447.52. This represents a 6.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 34,377 shares of company stock worth $9,251,221 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $311.00 target price on Union Pacific and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $277.00 price target on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Benchmark boosted their price target on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $300.00 price target (up from $260.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $307.00 price target (up from $285.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $282.21.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNP opened at $272.37 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $262.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $248.86. The company has a market cap of $161.71 billion, a PE ratio of 22.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Union Pacific Corporation has a twelve month low of $210.84 and a twelve month high of $279.70.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $6.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.12 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 39.58% and a net margin of 29.20%.The business’s revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.70 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Union Pacific Corporation will post 12.55 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is currently 45.47%.

Union Pacific Company Profile

Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP) is one of the largest freight railroad companies in the United States. Its principal operating subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad, has roots that trace back to the Pacific Railway Act of 1862 and the construction of the first transcontinental rail link completed in 1869. The company is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, and operates as a holding company for rail transportation and related services.

Union Pacific’s core business is the movement of freight by rail across an extensive rail network serving the western two‑thirds of the United States.