Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Has $11.64 Million Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. trimmed its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC – Get Rating) by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 55,522 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 12,435 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $11,640,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter worth $30,000. Adirondack Trust Co. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth $31,000. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth $31,000. Newfound Research LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Insight Inv LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $45,000. 72.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $203.90 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $202.40 and a 1 year high of $291.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $235.58 and a 200-day moving average of $236.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.01. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 25.66% and a return on equity of 24.98%. The company had revenue of $3.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.12 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 3rd were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. This is a boost from Norfolk Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 38.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. Barclays raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Monday, December 5th. Credit Suisse Group lowered their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $275.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Norfolk Southern from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $285.00 to $245.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $250.17.

About Norfolk Southern

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Norfolk Southern Corp. is a transportation company, which engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods. The company also transports overseas freight through several Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports. Its services include property leases and sales, wire line or pipeline and fiber optics projects, access property, managing private crossings, promoting businesses with signboards, and natural resource management.