Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $4.84 Million Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,479 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 1,470 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $4,841,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Provence Wealth Management Group acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 662.5% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Worth Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Operose Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Morgan Stanley cut Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.74.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $241.28 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $59.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $252.95 and its 200-day moving average is $230.80. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released 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). The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.09 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 21.06% and a net margin of 15.03%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.33%.

Norfolk Southern 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.