Gallacher Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Gallacher Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 14.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,886 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 232 shares during the period. Gallacher Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $400,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $6,214,000. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 119,260 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $25,283,000 after purchasing an additional 4,700 shares during the period. AXS Investments LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 151,049 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $37,221,000 after purchasing an additional 19,565 shares during the period. Finally, Whitener Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Whitener Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,810 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,924,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI upgraded Norfolk Southern from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $242.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 17th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $243.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 11th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $226.00 to $253.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $245.40.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC traded up $1.37 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $206.38. The company had a trading volume of 962,644 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,429,613. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company has a market cap of $46.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.56, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.27. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $196.33 and a 12-month high of $261.71. The company has a fifty day moving average of $223.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $216.65.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 27th. The railroad operator reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.15 by ($0.20). The company had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 24.88% and a net margin of 20.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.45 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 12.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 4th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 3rd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.56%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.