Fruth Investment Management Reduces Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Fruth Investment Management lowered its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 3.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,678 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,156,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cedar Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth about $31,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NSC. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.17.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $253.84 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $57.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $246.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $236.66. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.95 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $371,077.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $371,077.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.