Union Pacific Corporation Increases Quarterly Dividend $UNP

• Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) declares $0.88/share quarterly dividend, 10% increase from prior dividend of $0.80.
• Forward yield 2.19%
• Payable March 29; for shareholders of record Feb. 28; ex-div Feb. 27.

Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP) announced that its Board of Directors today voted to increase the quarterly dividend on the Company’s common shares by 10 percent to 88 cents per share. The dividend is payable March 29, 2019, to shareholders of record February 28, 2019. This marks Union Pacific’s fourth dividend increase in the past six quarters. Union Pacific has paid dividends on its common stock for 120 consecutive years.

The Board today also approved a new share repurchase authorization, enabling the Company to buy up to 150 million of its common shares by March 31, 2022. The new authorization is effective April 1, 2019, and replaces the current authorization, which will now expire on March 31, 2019. The new authorization allows for the repurchase of 21 percent of current outstanding shares.

"The dividend increase and new share repurchase authorization are consistent with financial guidance we provided at our investor conference last year, including maintaining a dividend payout ratio between 40 and 45 percent and repurchasing approximately $20 billion of shares between 2018 and 2020," said Rob Knight, Union Pacific chief financial officer. "These actions demonstrate our confidence in Union Pacific’s ability to continue growing cash returns for our shareholders."

For more information, visit www.up.com

According to the list of U.S. Dividend Champions, Union Pacific Corporation is a Dividend Contenders. UNP has a 12-year dividend raising streak.

Dividend Growth Rates
DGR	DGR	DGR	DGR
1-yr	3-yr	5-yr	10-yr
23.4	11.6	15.6	20.7

Dividend Yield Chart:

Union Pacific Corp stock dividend yield is close to 3-year low.

Payout Ratio:

This is the historical payout ratio of Union Pacific Corp. If payout ratio is close to or higher than 100%, dividends might not be sustainable.