Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Purchased by HighPoint Advisor Group LLC

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,297 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,122,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of NSC. United Bank increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 8,875 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,205,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 40.9% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,059 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,257,000 after buying an additional 1,469 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.9% in the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 45,945 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $11,418,000 after acquiring an additional 1,704 shares in the last quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 7.2% during the third quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 1,393 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,346,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 2.9 %

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $237.24 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $245.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $248.93. The company has a market capitalization of $53.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 46.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stephens raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.84.

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.