Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Core Alternative Capital

Core Alternative Capital cut its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 26,729 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,248 shares during the period. Core Alternative Capital’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $6,273,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,318,716,000 after buying an additional 196,249 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,580,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,133,828,000 after purchasing an additional 62,186 shares in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,892,717 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $967,340,000 after purchasing an additional 103,281 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $819,553,000 after purchasing an additional 3,280,579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 48.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $671,532,000 after purchasing an additional 881,415 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 1.8 %

NSC opened at $253.63 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $246.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $250.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. Analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.11.

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.