Farringdon Capital Ltd. Acquires Shares of 3,262 Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Farringdon Capital Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,262 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $744,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of UNP. Advisory Research Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Advisory Research Inc. now owns 6,650 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,516,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 18,922 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $4,315,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Master S Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $333,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 9,816 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $2,238,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Regal Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 23.9% in the fourth quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,391 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $545,000 after purchasing an additional 461 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on UNP. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $230.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Union Pacific from $265.00 to $255.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded Union Pacific from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $265.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $257.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Union Pacific Trading Up 0.8 %

UNP stock traded up $1.79 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $217.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 678,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,941,783. The firm has a market capitalization of $130.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.64, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.06. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $204.66 and a 1 year high of $258.07. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $236.23.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. Union Pacific's payout ratio is 48.33%.

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.