Violich Capital Management Inc. Has $9.42 Million Stock Position in Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP)

Violich Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) by 1.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 39,865 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 690 shares during the quarter. Union Pacific makes up approximately 1.3% of Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Violich Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Union Pacific were worth $9,418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Union Pacific by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,430,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,282,305,000 after acquiring an additional 1,616,895 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in Union Pacific by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,395,364 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,370,559,000 after acquiring an additional 1,298,178 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Union Pacific in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,927,377,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Union Pacific by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,686,387 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,752,804,000 after acquiring an additional 363,937 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Union Pacific by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,962,650 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,587,763,000 after acquiring an additional 920,414 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.38% of the company’s stock.

Union Pacific Stock Performance

Shares of UNP opened at $233.33 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.73. Union Pacific Corporation has a twelve month low of $204.66 and a twelve month high of $258.07. The firm has a market cap of $139.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.02, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.05. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $226.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $231.18.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by ($0.03). Union Pacific had a net margin of 27.76% and a return on equity of 40.80%. The business had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.69 earnings per share. Union Pacific’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Union Pacific Corporation will post 11.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $270.00 to $248.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $231.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $244.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Union Pacific has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $256.63.

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.