Handelsbanken Fonder AB Reduces Stake in Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its stake in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 264,491 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 11,378 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $71,942,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 40.4% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,312 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $546,000 after acquiring an additional 665 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 20,606 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,741,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,733 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $859,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 6,091 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,401,000 after purchasing an additional 554 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,528,426 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $351,660,000 after purchasing an additional 105,664 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $310.00 price target (up from $286.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $294.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Union Pacific from $326.00 to $349.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $317.00 target price on Union Pacific and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $335.00 price target (up from $315.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, July 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Union Pacific has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $320.89.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE UNP opened at $292.31 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $173.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.67, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.96. Union Pacific Corporation has a one year low of $210.84 and a one year high of $315.99. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $280.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $263.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 28.85% and a return on equity of 38.46%. The firm had revenue of $6.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.03 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Union Pacific Corporation will post 12.9 EPS 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. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st will be given a $1.42 dividend. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This is a boost from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is 44.70%.

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 value of $789,504.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 43,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,353,447.52. The trade was a 6.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Union Pacific Company Profile

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.