Analyzing Union Pacific (UNP) and Its Rivals

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) is one of 101 public companies in the “Ground Transportation” industry, but how does it contrast to its rivals? We will compare Union Pacific to similar businesses based on the strength of its institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, dividends, profitability and risk.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Union Pacific and its rivals, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Union Pacific	0	4	19	1	2.88
Union Pacific Competitors	1382	6537	8701	267	2.47

Union Pacific presently has a consensus target price of $325.09, suggesting a potential upside of 7.39%. As a group, “Ground Transportation” companies have a potential upside of 16.60%. Given Union Pacific’s rivals higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Union Pacific has less favorable growth aspects than its rivals.

Dividends

Union Pacific pays an annual dividend of $5.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. Union Pacific pays out 44.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Ground Transportation” companies pay a dividend yield of 1.5% and pay out 26.6% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Union Pacific has increased its dividend for 18 consecutive years.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

80.4% of Union Pacific shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 58.1% of shares of all “Ground Transportation” companies are owned by institutional investors. 0.2% of Union Pacific shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 14.8% of shares of all “Ground Transportation” companies are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Union Pacific has a beta of 0.84, indicating that its stock price is 16% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Union Pacific’s rivals have a beta of 1.03, indicating that their average stock price is 3% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Union Pacific and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Union Pacific	28.90%	37.54%	10.68%
Union Pacific Competitors	6.85%	12.56%	3.98%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Union Pacific and its rivals top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Union Pacific	$24.51 billion	$7.14 billion	23.59
Union Pacific Competitors	$8.63 billion	$896.49 million	31.19

Union Pacific has higher revenue and earnings than its rivals. Union Pacific is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Summary

Union Pacific beats its rivals on 10 of the 15 factors compared.

Union Pacific Company Profile

Union Pacific Corporation operates one of the largest freight rail networks in the United States through its subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad. Its network serves 23 states across the western two-thirds of the country and connects with other railroads, ports and border crossings, including routes to Mexico and Canada. The company transports a broad range of goods, including agricultural products, industrial materials, coal and energy products, and consumer merchandise. Its services support industries such as manufacturing, construction, agriculture, automotive and retail, with intermodal transportation combining rail with truck and shipping services.