Running Oak Capital LLC Has $3.11 Million Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Running Oak Capital LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 53.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,184 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,222 shares during the period. Running Oak Capital LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $3,105,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 956 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,016 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $240,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Fiduciary Group LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 9,986 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,360,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 7,456 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,762,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 1,679 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 2,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Claude Mongeau acquired 5,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $221.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,248,650.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $4,420,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the subject of several research reports. Loop Capital raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $264.56.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.2 %

Norfolk Southern stock traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $224.87. The stock had a trading volume of 1,231,012 shares, compared to its average volume of 832,257. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $229.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $239.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.80 billion, a PE ratio of 36.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12 month low of $183.09 and a 12 month high of $263.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.32 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.88 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 86.96%.

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.