Union Pacific Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:UNP)

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors purchased 9,004 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 84% compared to the typical daily volume of 4,901 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at Union Pacific

In other Union Pacific news, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $937,500.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 56,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,170,500. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Union Pacific during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,832,127,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Union Pacific by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,261,449 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,478,649,000 after acquiring an additional 19,145 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,851,767 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,682,931,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285,144 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,803,796 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,385,457,000 after purchasing an additional 285,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Union Pacific by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,867,842 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,441,260,000 after purchasing an additional 125,522 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

UNP traded up $10.24 on Thursday, reaching $242.22. The company had a trading volume of 1,979,537 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,309,260. Union Pacific has a fifty-two week low of $190.37 and a fifty-two week high of $258.66. The stock has a market cap of $147.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s fifty day moving average is $244.48 and its 200 day moving average is $234.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The railroad operator reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.15. Union Pacific had a net margin of 26.45% and a return on equity of 46.87%. The firm had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.67 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Union Pacific will post 11.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. Union Pacific’s payout ratio is presently 49.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on UNP. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $248.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Union Pacific from $237.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $231.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Union Pacific currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $255.00.

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.