TD Cowen Boosts Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target to $259.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its target price upped by TD Cowen from $253.00 to $259.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. TD Cowen currently has a hold rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

NSC has been the topic of several other research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $263.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $294.00 to $302.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $274.16.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.9 %

NSC stock opened at $251.09 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $249.01 and a 200-day moving average of $236.99. Norfolk Southern has a fifty-two week low of $183.76 and a fifty-two week high of $263.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.65 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,887,655. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,887,655. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $742,440. This trade represents a 200.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired a total of 3,700 shares of company stock worth $921,565 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 14,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,365,000 after buying an additional 1,724 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 8.9% during the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 7,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,766,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Trajan Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 31,509 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $7,830,000 after purchasing an additional 4,279 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $222,025,000 after purchasing an additional 889,925 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

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.