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Union Pacific (UNP) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know

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Union Pacific (UNP - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $213.27, moving -1.36% from the previous trading session. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 1.13%. Elsewhere, the Dow lost 1.01%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.14%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the railroad had lost 8.97% over the past month. This has was narrower than the Transportation sector's loss of 9.58% and lagged the S&P 500's loss of 7.59% in that time.

Investors will be hoping for strength from Union Pacific as it approaches its next earnings release. In that report, analysts expect Union Pacific to post earnings of $3.03 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 17.9%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $6.47 billion, up 16.18% from the prior-year quarter.

For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $11.55 per share and revenue of $25 billion, which would represent changes of +16.08% and +14.64%, respectively, from the prior year.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Union Pacific. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. Union Pacific is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Union Pacific has a Forward P/E ratio of 18.72 right now. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 18.72, which means Union Pacific is trading at a no noticeable deviation to the group.

It is also worth noting that UNP currently has a PEG ratio of 1.87. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Transportation - Rail was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.84 at yesterday's closing price.

The Transportation - Rail industry is part of the Transportation sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 148, putting it in the bottom 42% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow UNP in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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