Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Purchases 110 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. raised its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.1% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,693 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 110 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,470,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 662.5% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 317.1% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 146 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 1.4 %

Norfolk Southern stock traded down $3.12 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $224.91. The stock had a trading volume of 464,240 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,291,996. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market cap of $50.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.32. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $183.09 and a one year high of $263.66. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $222.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $237.61.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.32 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.96%.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total transaction of $1,902,593.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $1,902,593.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NSC. Loop Capital upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.53.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods in the United States. The company transports agriculture, forest, and consumer products comprising soybeans, wheat, corn, fertilizers, livestock and poultry feed, food products, food oils, flour, sweeteners, ethanol, lumber and wood products, pulp board and paper products, wood fibers, wood pulp, beverages, and canned goods; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products comprising crude oil, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, sand, and natural gas liquids; metals and construction materials, such as steel, aluminum products, machinery, scrap metals, cement, aggregates, minerals, clay, transportation equipment, and military-related products; and automotive, including finished motor vehicles and automotive parts, as well as coal.