Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Given New $265.00 Price Target at Susquehanna

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its target price cut by Susquehanna from $285.00 to $265.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $263.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NSC stock opened at $236.94 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $253.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $245.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market cap of $53.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.25, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.34. Norfolk Southern has a twelve month low of $206.71 and a twelve month high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Norfolk Southern will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.70%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,550,000. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of NSC. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.