Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) PT Raised to $272.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its target price increased by Royal Bank of Canada from $267.00 to $272.00 in a report published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

NSC has been the subject of a number of other reports. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Benchmark lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an underweight rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, July 8th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $266.56.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $244.88 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $246.79 and its 200 day moving average is $237.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $55.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern has a one year low of $183.09 and a one year high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.95 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern will post 11.8 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $371,077.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NSC. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 80,261 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $18,972,000 after buying an additional 6,764 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 16.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 20,325 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,805,000 after purchasing an additional 2,879 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 198,626 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $46,951,000 after purchasing an additional 6,414 shares in the last quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 43.0% during the 4th quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 3,210 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $759,000 after purchasing an additional 966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 22,763 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,381,000 after purchasing an additional 944 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

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.