North Forty Two & Co. Invests $830,000 in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

North Forty Two & Co. bought a new stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 3,640 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $830,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Roble Belko & Company Inc raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 213 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Pflug Koory LLC lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 8,569 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,954,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,409 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Mystic Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Mystic Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,309 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $527,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Regatta Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Regatta Capital Group LLC now owns 1,672 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Union Pacific news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were 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. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on UNP. Benchmark boosted their price target on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $263.00.

Union Pacific Price Performance

UNP stock traded down $1.00 during trading on Friday, reaching $233.79. 4,167,677 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,304,584. Union Pacific Co. has a twelve month low of $218.55 and a twelve month high of $258.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company has a market capitalization of $141.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a 50-day moving average of $242.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $240.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

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