Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Has $34.97 Million Stock Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 38.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 154,543 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 43,256 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $34,967,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 272.3% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,678,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $379,689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227,318 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Union Pacific by 35.3% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,118,477 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,012,857,000 after buying an additional 1,073,625 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Union Pacific by 7.6% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,370,752 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,812,689,000 after buying an additional 518,985 shares during the last quarter. Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth approximately $123,297,000. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 186.4% in the second quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 704,769 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $159,461,000 after acquiring an additional 458,664 shares during the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price objective on Union Pacific from $290.00 to $273.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $266.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Daiwa America lowered shares of Union Pacific from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.32.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,552 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.59, for a total value of $875,887.68. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 64,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,014,787.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE:UNP opened at $243.35 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $148.25 billion, a PE ratio of 23.22, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.05. Union Pacific Co. has a 52-week low of $199.33 and a 52-week high of $258.66. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $238.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.03. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 42.62% and a net margin of 26.90%. The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.57 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This is a positive change from Union Pacific’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is 51.15%.

Union Pacific Company Profile

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.