Naples Money Management LLC Purchases New Stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 12,112 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $2,975,000. Union Pacific makes up approximately 2.8% of Naples Money Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 90,390.6% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,697,556 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,836,353,000 after purchasing an additional 13,682,419 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,983,932 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,860,303,000 after purchasing an additional 883,963 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.3% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,261,449 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,478,649,000 after purchasing an additional 19,145 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 4.4% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,803,796 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,385,457,000 after buying an additional 285,988 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,276,498,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Union Pacific

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $937,500.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 56,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,170,500. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on UNP. StockNews.com cut Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Raymond James increased their price target on Union Pacific from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Union Pacific in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Benchmark increased their price objective on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $266.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised 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. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.48.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP traded up $2.27 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $232.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,946,614 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,312,077. The stock has a market cap of $141.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.13, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $245.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $190.37 and a twelve month high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 46.87% and a net margin of 26.45%. The company’s revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.67 EPS. Research analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is presently 49.71%.

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.