Gries Financial LLC Boosts Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Gries Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,435 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Gries Financial LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $337,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NSC. Strategic Blueprint LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $220,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 312.4% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 19,881 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,666,000 after buying an additional 15,060 shares in the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 45,300 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $10,632,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 1,230 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $289,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 11.6% in the fourth quarter. Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC now owns 1,207 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $283,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on NSC shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Loop Capital raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Stephens increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $277.74.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC opened at $257.50 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60. The stock has a market cap of $58.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.34. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $249.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $248.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

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.