UBS Group Cuts Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target to $294.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective lowered by analysts at UBS Group from $302.00 to $294.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. UBS Group’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 23.71% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $305.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued 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 $262.32.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.6 %

NSC traded up $1.43 during trading on Thursday, reaching $237.65. 431,196 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,271,105. The stock has a market cap of $58.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern has a fifty-two week low of $183.09 and a fifty-two week high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $252.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $232.12.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 15.03% and a return on equity of 21.06%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.32 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern will post 11.93 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.5% in the 1st quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,811 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,845,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the period. Summit Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 40,946 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $10,436,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 26.5% during the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 4,378 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,116,000 after acquiring an additional 917 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Berkshire Bank bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $204,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.