FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH Acquires 173 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH boosted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,368 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the quarter. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $768,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNP. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA grew its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 1,786 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. lifted its holdings in Union Pacific by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. now owns 17,706 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,038,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 4,727 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,078,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Whitener Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,992 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $682,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Carderock Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Union Pacific during the fourth quarter worth about $437,000. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE UNP opened at $233.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.63. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $218.55 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $233.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $238.79.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.51 EPS. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $277.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup increased 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. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $273.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. StockNews.com downgraded Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $259.35.

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.