Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Purchased by Ballentine Partners LLC

Ballentine Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 58.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,833 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,791 shares during the quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,142,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Boltwood Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 2,145 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $507,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 23.6% in the third quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC now owns 262 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Bridge Creek Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.5% in the third quarter. Bridge Creek Capital Management LLC now owns 10,454 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,059,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 4,403 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Horan Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.5% in the third quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 1,578 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $311,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $248.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.99, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $253.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $227.26.

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

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 2nd were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 67.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on NSC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $238.00 to $237.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. BMO Capital Markets decreased 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 report on Monday, January 29th. Barclays upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $305.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $238.00 to $302.00 in a report on Monday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $252.38.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.