International Assets Investment Management LLC Sells 892,730 Shares of Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP)

International Assets Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) by 99.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,310 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 892,730 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $758,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 24,788,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,109,829,000 after acquiring an additional 217,780 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Union Pacific by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,813,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,146,451,000 after purchasing an additional 182,620 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Union Pacific by 1.3% in the 2nd 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. grew its position in Union Pacific by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,322,450 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,795,993,000 after purchasing an additional 625,492 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Union Pacific by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,285,585 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,549,271,000 after purchasing an additional 143,896 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Price Performance

NYSE:UNP opened at $231.58 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $140.40 billion, a PE ratio of 21.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.06. Union Pacific Co. has a 52 week low of $218.55 and a 52 week 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. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $234.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $238.63.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.75 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 analysts’ expectations of $6.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.51 EPS. Union Pacific’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Union Pacific Co. will post 10.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI cut shares of Union Pacific from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $254.00 to $247.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Union Pacific from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $252.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $263.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $266.00 price objective on shares of Union Pacific in a report on Friday, October 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $260.30.

Union Pacific 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.