Union Pacific Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:UNP)

Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Investors bought 30,046 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 310% compared to the average volume of 7,326 call options.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Eric J. Gehringer sold 1,999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.93, for a total value of $469,625.07. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kenyatta G. Rocker sold 27,387 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.76, for a total value of $7,442,691.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 61,102 shares in the company, valued at $16,605,079.52. The trade was a 30.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 31,386 shares of company stock worth $8,461,716 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Union Pacific

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.5% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,617,313 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,120,251,000 after buying an additional 23,698 shares during the last quarter. Regal Partners Ltd grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.3% during the first quarter. Regal Partners Ltd now owns 272,599 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $66,138,000 after buying an additional 950 shares during the last quarter. Resolution Capital Ltd grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 3.3% during the first quarter. Resolution Capital Ltd now owns 28,460 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,905,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 29.6% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 322,529 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $78,252,000 after buying an additional 73,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.0% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 105,940 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $25,703,000 after buying an additional 1,083 shares during the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Union Pacific from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Union Pacific from $256.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Benchmark boosted their target price 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 reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $300.00 target price (up from $260.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $274.00 target price (up from $253.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.47.

Union Pacific Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE UNP traded up $4.37 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $274.93. 3,196,375 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,250,684. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $252.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $242.23. 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 has a 52 week low of $210.84 and a 52 week high of $276.40. The stock has a market cap of $163.23 billion, a PE ratio of 22.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.99.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.07. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 39.58% and a net margin of 29.20%.The company had revenue of $6.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.70 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Union Pacific will post 12.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

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

About Union Pacific

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.