Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Given New $300.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price target decreased by Wells Fargo & Company from $320.00 to $300.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $236.94 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $253.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $245.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Norfolk Southern has a 1 year low of $206.71 and a 1 year high of $277.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.61 billion, a PE ratio of 22.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.65 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Norfolk Southern will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 3.6% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 255,200 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $63,417,000 after purchasing an additional 8,844 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 20.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,428 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,556,000 after buying an additional 2,453 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 533,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $132,565,000 after acquiring an additional 3,621 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $222,025,000 after acquiring an additional 889,925 shares during the period. Finally, Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth about $1,676,000. 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.