UP to Increase Dividend

Union Pacific, the largest U.S. freight railroad, announced it is increasing the quarterly dividend it pays to investors.

UP, Omaha, Neb., will increase its quarterly dividend by 26% to 44 cents a share, and is payable Jan. 2 to stockholders of record as of Nov. 29, the carrier said Thursday in a statement.

Jim Young, chief executive officer of UP, cited the company’s record financial results in 2007, driven by “productivity initiatives and capital investments,” as reasons for bumping up the quar-terly dividend.