Miramar Capital LLC Raises Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Miramar Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 54,564 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,648 shares during the period. Union Pacific accounts for 3.0% of Miramar Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Miramar Capital LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $12,443,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of UNP. State Street Corp grew its stake in Union Pacific by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,109,829,000 after buying an additional 217,780 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,813,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,146,451,000 after buying an additional 182,620 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Union Pacific by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,795,993,000 after buying an additional 625,492 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,305,684 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,437,948,000 after buying an additional 20,099 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,020,107 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,237,356,000 after buying an additional 31,899 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Union Pacific news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total value of $1,636,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,632,388. The trade was a 19.79 % 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. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,240,000. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective (up from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.00.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

NYSE UNP opened at $249.84 on Friday. Union Pacific Co. has a 52-week low of $218.55 and a 52-week high of $258.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a market capitalization of $150.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a fifty day moving average of $241.04 and a 200-day moving average of $240.98.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.82% and a return on equity of 41.12%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Union Pacific Co. will post 11.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.33%.

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.