Investors Buy High Volume of Call Options on Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP)

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Traders purchased 6,604 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 67% compared to the average volume of 3,946 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Union Pacific news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.00, for a total value of $1,636,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,632,388. This represents a 19.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UNP. Allred Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Union Pacific by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Allred Capital Management LLC now owns 8,349 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,904,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Palogic Value Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Union Pacific by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Palogic Value Management L.P. now owns 2,823 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $644,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Roble Belko & Company Inc increased its stake in Union Pacific by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 213 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Pflug Koory LLC raised its holdings in Union Pacific by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 8,569 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,954,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Union Pacific by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,409 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 80.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Union Pacific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNP opened at $215.61 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.22 billion, a PE ratio of 19.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.06. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $232.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $235.84. Union Pacific has a twelve month low of $204.66 and a twelve month high of $258.07.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.79 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.11 billion. Union Pacific had a return on equity of 41.12% and a net margin of 27.82%. Equities research analysts expect that Union Pacific will post 11.99 EPS for the current year.

Union Pacific Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Union Pacific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Union Pacific from $285.00 to $260.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Union Pacific from $255.00 to $245.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Loop Capital downgraded Union Pacific from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $265.00 to $200.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Union Pacific from $265.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Union Pacific from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $260.00 to $244.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Union Pacific has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.50.

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.