Norfolk Southern’s (NSC) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Benchmark

Benchmark reiterated their buy rating on shares of Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $277.00 price objective on the railroad operator’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, April 8th. They issued a buy rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered Norfolk Southern from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Barclays raised 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $262.32.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $239.94 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $54.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern has a 52 week low of $183.09 and a 52 week high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $251.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.92.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.25%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,933,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $1,444,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 200.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 16,077 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,198,000 after acquiring an additional 10,719 shares in the last quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,973,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.8% in the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 187,259 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $36,877,000 after purchasing an additional 16,727 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.