NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Shares of Union Pacific  (UNP) - Get Report ended Monday's trading session up 1.92% to $116.72 on heavy volume, after the transportation company was upgraded to an "outperform" rating from "neutral" this morning by analysts at Macquarie.

Despite the higher rating, analysts at the investment firm lowered their price target on the stock to $132 from $134.

About 5.06 million shares of Union Pacific exchanged hands today, compared to its average trading volume of about 3.47 million shares a day.

Union Pacific stock is slightly up 0.01% to $116.73 in after-hours trading.

Mark Sebastian, a member of TheStreet's Options Profits Team commented on Union Pacific in a recent post. Here is what he had to say about the stock:

I still do not like the rail road stocks. As the U.S. dollar gets stronger and oil gets cheaper (along with gasoline) they look less and less like stocks that are going to hold these near all-time highs. While the oil stocks have taken the heat of late, the rails will likely be next. I closed a Union Pacific (UNP) May 115 put today that was up about 55-60% making a profit of $1.60-$1.70.

I am going to take some of those profits and buy the May 105 puts for $1.46, thus, effectively owning the 105 puts for free and keeping dollars in my pocket ($1.46-$1.65=a long put +$0.19 credit). My goal is to make 100% on this put,or better.

-Mark Sebastian, 'Mark Sebastian Novice Trade: UNP Revisiting a Winner' originally published 3/13/2015 on OptionsProfits.com.

Want more information like this from Mark Sebastian BEFORE your stock moves? Learn more about OptionsProfits.com now.

Omaha, NE-based UPC owns transportation companies including its principal operating company, Union Pacific Railroad Co., which links 23 states in the western 66% of the U.S.

Union Pacific Railroad's business includes agricultural products, automotive, chemicals, energy, industrial products and intermodal.

Separately, TheStreet Ratings team rates UNION PACIFIC CORP as a Buy with a ratings score of A+. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

"We rate UNION PACIFIC CORP (UNP) a BUY. This is based on the convergence of positive investment measures, which should help this stock outperform the majority of stocks that we rate. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its solid stock price performance, impressive record of earnings per share growth, revenue growth, notable return on equity and expanding profit margins. Although the company may harbor some minor weaknesses, we feel they are unlikely to have a significant impact on results."

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings Team goes as follows:

• Looking at where the stock is today compared to one year ago, we find that it is not only higher, but it has also clearly outperformed the rise in the S&P 500 over the same period. Although other factors naturally played a role, the company's strong earnings growth was key. Turning our attention to the future direction of the stock, it goes without saying that even the best stocks can fall in an overall down market. However, in any other environment, this stock still has good upside potential despite the fact that it has already risen in the past year.
• UNION PACIFIC CORP has improved earnings per share by 26.3% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings per share growth over the past two years. We feel that this trend should continue. During the past fiscal year, UNION PACIFIC CORP increased its bottom line by earning $5.76 versus $4.72 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($6.57 versus $5.76).
• Despite its growing revenue, the company underperformed as compared with the industry average of 14.0%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 9.3%. Growth in the company's revenue appears to have helped boost the earnings per share.
• The return on equity has improved slightly when compared to the same quarter one year prior. This can be construed as a modest strength in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Road & Rail industry and the overall market, UNION PACIFIC CORP's return on equity exceeds that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.
• 46.51% is the gross profit margin for UNION PACIFIC CORP which we consider to be strong. It has increased from the same quarter the previous year. Along with this, the net profit margin of 23.25% is above that of the industry average.
• You can view the full analysis from the report here: UNP Ratings Report