Simplicity Solutions LLC Purchases 747 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Simplicity Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 25.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,735 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 747 shares during the period. Simplicity Solutions LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $883,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Provence Wealth Management Group bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 662.5% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Worth Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Operose Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Barclays upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $305.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Benchmark boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.33.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $242.90 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $59.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.30. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $253.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $230.32. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $183.09 and a one year high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.04). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 21.06% and a net margin of 15.03%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.42 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 67.33%.

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.