Exeter Financial LLC Has $1.16 Million Position in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Exeter Financial LLC raised its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,106 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the quarter. Exeter Financial LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $1,164,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 50.3% in the 4th quarter. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,619 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,334,000 after purchasing an additional 4,893 shares during the last quarter. Grandview Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Union Pacific during the fourth quarter valued at about $222,000. Traveka Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 236.6% during the fourth quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 4,567 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,041,000 after buying an additional 3,210 shares in the last quarter. BCS Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the fourth quarter worth about $631,000. Finally, PFW Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth about $773,000. 80.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Union Pacific from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $265.00 to $262.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $259.80.

Union Pacific Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE UNP opened at $226.60 on Tuesday. Union Pacific Co. has a 1-year low of $218.55 and a 1-year high of $258.66. The company has a market capitalization of $137.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.81, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.06. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $234.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $238.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.78 by ($0.03). Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.33% and a return on equity of 41.79%. The company had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.51 EPS. Union Pacific’s quarterly revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.22%.

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.