Alberta Investment Management Corp Acquires 33,460 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its holdings in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 1,153.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,360 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 33,460 shares during the quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $8,292,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $403,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter worth approximately $84,000. Callahan Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,086,000. Mcdonald Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Union Pacific by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. Mcdonald Partners LLC now owns 3,279 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $748,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Union Pacific in the 4th quarter worth approximately $201,000. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on UNP. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective (up previously from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $288.00 to $283.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $261.40.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP opened at $247.02 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $237.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $240.57. Union Pacific Co. has a 1 year low of $218.55 and a 1 year high of $258.66. The stock has a market cap of $149.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.06.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 previous year, the company posted $2.71 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Union Pacific Co. will post 12.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 64,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,240,000. This represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total transaction of $1,636,740.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,632,388. This represents a 19.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.