Seven Eight Capital LP Takes $1.14 Million Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Seven Eight Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 5,033 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,139,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Richardson Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 211.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 109 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Cultivar Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on UNP shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Union Pacific from $280.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $259.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Loop Capital lowered shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $276.00 to $238.00 in a report on Monday, June 17th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 target price for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $258.79.

Union Pacific Trading Down 1.2 %

UNP opened at $245.39 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $149.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.42, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $199.33 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $245.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $239.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.03. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.90% and a return on equity of 42.62%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.57 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total transaction of $875,887.68. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,014,787.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.