Capital World Investors Has $4.66 Billion Stake in Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 92.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,136,349 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 9,655,306 shares during the period. Capital World Investors’ holdings in Union Pacific were worth $4,658,142,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Midwest Trust Co raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 2.8% in the third quarter. Midwest Trust Co now owns 281,036 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $66,428,000 after buying an additional 7,759 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 33.3% in the third quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 36,819 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $8,703,000 after buying an additional 9,207 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 8.2% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 842,206 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $199,072,000 after buying an additional 63,523 shares in the last quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the third quarter valued at approximately $69,343,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 1,581.2% in the third quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 232,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $54,838,000 after buying an additional 218,200 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UNP shares. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $277.00 price target on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $274.00 price objective (up from $253.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $315.00 price objective (up from $285.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and set a $305.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $289.00 price objective (up from $273.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Union Pacific currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $282.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Union Pacific news, EVP Eric J. Gehringer sold 2,991 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.96, for a total transaction of $789,504.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 43,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,353,447.52. The trade was a 6.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jennifer L. Hamann sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.70, for a total transaction of $549,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 114,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,492,157.40. The trade was a 1.71% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,377 shares of company stock valued at $9,251,221. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Union Pacific Stock Up 3.2%

Shares of UNP opened at $272.28 on Friday. Union Pacific Corporation has a one year low of $210.84 and a one year high of $279.70. The company has a market cap of $161.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $259.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $247.03.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $6.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.12 billion. Union Pacific had a net margin of 29.20% and a return on equity of 39.58%. The company’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.70 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Corporation will post 12.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.38 per share. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is presently 45.47%.

About Union Pacific

Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP) is one of the largest freight railroad companies in the United States. Its principal operating subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad, has roots that trace back to the Pacific Railway Act of 1862 and the construction of the first transcontinental rail link completed in 1869. The company is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, and operates as a holding company for rail transportation and related services.

Union Pacific’s core business is the movement of freight by rail across an extensive rail network serving the western two‑thirds of the United States.