Union Pacific Co. (UNP) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.34 on March 31st

Union Pacific Co. (NYSE:UNP) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 6th,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of 1.34 per share by the railroad operator on Monday, March 31st. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th.

Union Pacific has raised its dividend by an average of 7.2% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 18 consecutive years. Union Pacific has a dividend payout ratio of 40.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Union Pacific to earn $13.10 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $5.36 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 40.9%.

Union Pacific Stock Down 0.6 %

Union Pacific stock opened at $242.12 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $146.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.06. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $235.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $240.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. Union Pacific has a twelve month low of $218.55 and a twelve month high of $258.66.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.91 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 prior year, the firm earned $2.71 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Union Pacific will post 12.01 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Union Pacific

In other Union Pacific news, EVP Craig V. Richardson sold 6,495 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,632,388. This trade represents a 19.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, President Elizabeth F. Whited sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $1,875,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 64,960 shares in the company, valued at $16,240,000. The trade was a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on UNP. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $285.00 price objective (up from $265.00) on shares of Union Pacific in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Benchmark lifted their price target on Union Pacific from $266.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Union Pacific from $275.00 to $277.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Union Pacific from $253.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $261.40.

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.