Ledyard National Bank Boosts Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Ledyard National Bank lifted its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 24.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,536 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Ledyard National Bank’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,605,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Silver Oak Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth $219,000. Personal CFO Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 39.3% during the 3rd quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 87,905 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $21,596,000 after purchasing an additional 28,052 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 48.3% during the 4th quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 18,512 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,547,000 after purchasing an additional 6,031 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor Resource Council acquired a new stake in Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth $606,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $937,500.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 56,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,170,500. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Union Pacific Trading Down 0.7 %

Union Pacific stock traded down $1.81 during trading on Monday, reaching $240.98. The company had a trading volume of 1,730,332 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,324,740. Union Pacific Co. has a 12-month low of $190.71 and a 12-month high of $258.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $244.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $235.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $147.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.99, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.97 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.52% and a return on equity of 44.34%. Union Pacific’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.67 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on UNP shares. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $235.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $282.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $280.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $258.78.

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.