Swedbank AB Decreases Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Swedbank AB decreased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 124,882 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,123 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $29,310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter worth $25,000. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $249.37 per share, with a total value 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. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on NSC shares. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Susquehanna lowered their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.74.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $257.50 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $206.71 and a twelve month high of $277.60. The company has a market capitalization of $58.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.18, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $249.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $248.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

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

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

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

Norfolk Southern 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.