Union Pacific upgraded to Buy from Hold at Stifel

Stifel upgraded Union Pacific to Buy from Hold with a price target of $267, up from $248. The firm said it met with CEO Jim Vena and CFO Jennifer Hamann to discuss the progress at the company and the current rail freight environment, noting that the message was “clear”: the company is focused on operations and driving down OR. Such goals will be accomplished by “sweating the assets,” or namely driving increased productivity from what they own and cutting the resulting unnecessary costs, as well as pressing or higher prices, the analyst tells investors in a research note.