Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) Given New $322.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) had its target price reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $334.00 to $322.00 in a report published on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on UNP. UBS Group raised Union Pacific from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $310.00 to $339.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $301.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 price target (up from $282.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $326.00 to $349.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Erste Group Bank started coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Thursday, August 27th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.33.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE UNP opened at $277.06 on Monday. Union Pacific has a 1 year low of $215.53 and a 1 year high of $315.99. The firm has a market cap of $164.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.43, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $289.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $274.10.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 38.46% and a net margin of 28.85%.The business had revenue of $6.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Union Pacific will post 13.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st were given a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 45.99%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Union Pacific

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UNP. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 4.9% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,890,598 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $7,586,243,000 after purchasing an additional 1,302,732 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,527,563 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,951,497,000 after buying an additional 64,492 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,198,449 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,665,145,000 after acquiring an additional 34,115 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,885,560 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,592,768,000 after purchasing an additional 334,435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 4,639,602 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,073,233,000 after acquiring an additional 357,431 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

About Union Pacific

Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP) is a freight railroad company that operates one of the largest rail networks in North America. Through its principal subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad, the company provides transportation services for businesses across the western two-thirds of the United States.

Union Pacific transports a broad range of commodities and manufactured goods, including agricultural products, automotive vehicles and parts, chemicals, coal, industrial products, forest products, and intermodal containers.