Tradewinds Capital Management LLC Invests $510,000 in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Tradewinds Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $510,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its stake 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 period. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 317.1% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 146 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.2 %

NSC stock traded up $0.48 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $216.03. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 197,254 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,317,533. The company has a market cap of $48.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.32. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $225.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $238.75. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $183.09 and a 12 month high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced 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 net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.32 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.88 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 2,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $1,902,593.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. UBS Group dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Norfolk Southern from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $270.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. TD Cowen increased their price objective 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. One equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.89.

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.