Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Royal Bank of Canada Analyst Says

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its target price boosted by stock analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $275.00 to $286.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 11.12% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on NSC. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.74.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC traded up $0.63 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $257.37. 318,312 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,227,039. Norfolk Southern has a 12-month low of $206.71 and a 12-month high of $277.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $249.36 and a 200 day moving average of $248.69. The company has a market cap of $58.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,979.50. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,318,716,000 after acquiring an additional 196,249 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,580,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,133,828,000 after buying an additional 62,186 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.7% during the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,892,717 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $967,340,000 after acquiring an additional 103,281 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $819,553,000 after acquiring an additional 3,280,579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 48.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $671,532,000 after purchasing an additional 881,415 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.