Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Stock Position Increased by Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,498 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 54 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $5,791,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 9,342 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,208,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 28,448 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,725,000 after buying an additional 1,541 shares in the last quarter. Planning Directions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth $204,000. abrdn plc raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 375,217 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $88,694,000 after buying an additional 48,961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 204.3% during the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 3,810 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $901,000 after purchasing an additional 2,558 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $241.28 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $183.09 and a fifty-two week high of $263.66. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $252.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $231.33. The firm has a market cap of $59.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.08, a PEG ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its 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 firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 67.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NSC. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price 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. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. UBS Group raised Norfolk Southern from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $238.00 to $302.00 in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Morgan Stanley lowered Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.74.

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.