Foster & Motley Inc. Purchases Shares of 1,085 Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Foster & Motley Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 1,085 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $256,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $2,933,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $1,444,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 200.1% during the third quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 16,077 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,198,000 after buying an additional 10,719 shares in the last quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth $34,973,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.8% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 187,259 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $36,877,000 after buying an additional 16,727 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on NSC shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Benchmark lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.74.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $236.14 on Thursday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $252.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.12. The stock has a market cap of $58.14 billion, a PE ratio of 29.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by ($0.04). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 15.03% and a return on equity of 21.06%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.42 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.33%.

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.