Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Acquires 4,477 Shares of Union Pacific Corporation $UNP

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 73,649 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 4,477 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $17,408,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Union Pacific by 40.4% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,312 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 665 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.5% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 20,606 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,741,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 22.1% during the 2nd quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 1,787 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $411,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,470 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,179,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Interchange Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Union Pacific by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,168 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $267.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $295.00 target price on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Union Pacific from $257.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Union Pacific from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $260.14.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.9%

UNP stock opened at $263.82 on Tuesday. Union Pacific Corporation has a twelve month low of $204.66 and a twelve month high of $267.81. The company has a market cap of $156.55 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.98. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $239.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $230.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The railroad operator reported $2.86 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.92 by ($0.06). Union Pacific had a net margin of 29.12% and a return on equity of 40.89%. The firm had revenue of $6.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.15 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.91 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a $1.38 dividend. This represents a $5.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.12%.

About Union Pacific

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.