A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. Cuts Holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. cut its stake in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,199 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 60 shares during the quarter. A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $957,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UNP. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,109,829,000 after buying an additional 217,780 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Union Pacific by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,813,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,146,451,000 after purchasing an additional 182,620 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 1.3% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,312,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,880,701,000 after purchasing an additional 106,996 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Union Pacific by 9.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,795,993,000 after acquiring an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 2.3% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,285,585 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,549,271,000 after purchasing an additional 143,896 shares during the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Union Pacific Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:UNP traded down $5.00 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $226.82. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 661,488 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,232,140. The firm has a market cap of $137.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $234.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $238.63. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $218.55 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.78 by ($0.03). Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 27.33%. 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 business posted $2.51 earnings per share. Union Pacific’s revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is 49.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on UNP. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Union Pacific from $267.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $266.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $255.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $288.00 to $283.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Nine 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $260.30.

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.