Great Lakes Advisors LLC Makes New $1.89 Million Investment in Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 6,932 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,886,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,329,262 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $13,724,045,000 after purchasing an additional 659,378 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,330,080 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,090,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,082,285 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 92.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 20,136,349 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,658,142,000 after acquiring an additional 9,655,306 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,360,668 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,552,550,000 after purchasing an additional 296,814 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 16.8% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,463,071 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,509,030,000 after purchasing an additional 2,084,808 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on UNP shares. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Union Pacific from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Union Pacific from $305.00 to $333.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Stephens raised Union Pacific to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Union Pacific from $326.00 to $349.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $320.89.

Union Pacific Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of UNP opened at $307.97 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $286.30 and its 200 day moving average is $267.60. The company has a market capitalization of $182.96 billion, a PE ratio of 24.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.96. Union Pacific Corporation has a 12-month low of $210.84 and a 12-month high of $315.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $6.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 38.46% and a net margin of 28.85%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.03 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Union Pacific Corporation will post 12.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be issued a $1.42 dividend. This is a boost from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is presently 44.70%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Eric J. Gehringer sold 2,991 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 43,012 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,353,447.52. This represents a 6.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.