SG Americas Securities LLC Has $1.95 Million Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 110.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,234 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,325 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,946,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.2% during the first quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 852 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $220,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $81,000. United Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.0% in the first quarter. United Bank now owns 7,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,162,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,640 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,464,000 after buying an additional 377 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.3% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,946 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $555,000 after buying an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $251.72 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.24. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $183.09 and a 52 week high of $263.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $250.74 and a 200-day moving average of $225.12.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 21.06% and a net margin of 15.03%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.42 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 12.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on NSC. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Barclays raised Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $255.00 to $305.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.94.

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.