Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) Shares Purchased by Advisors Asset Management Inc.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) by 10.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 52,542 shares of the railroad operator's stock after buying an additional 4,820 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $11,982,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $6,109,829,000 after purchasing an additional 217,780 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,813,686 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $3,146,451,000 after purchasing an additional 182,620 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,305,684 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,437,948,000 after purchasing an additional 20,099 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,020,107 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,237,356,000 after purchasing an additional 31,899 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company's stock.

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Union Pacific Price Performance

NYSE:UNP traded down $1.00 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $233.79. 4,167,677 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,302,073. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $242.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $240.16. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $218.55 and a 1 year high of $258.07. The company has a market cap of $141.28 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.71 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Union Pacific's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.33%.

Insider Transactions at Union Pacific

In other news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total transaction of $1,636,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at $6,632,388. The trade was a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of Union Pacific stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 64,960 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,240,000. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $285.00 price target (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $295.00 target price for the company. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $263.00.

About Union Pacific

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.