Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Position Reduced by Hendershot Investments Inc.

Hendershot Investments Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 6.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,533 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 175 shares during the quarter. Hendershot Investments Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $544,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were bought at an average price of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,887,655. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $247.48 per share, with a total value of $494,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $742,440. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,887,655. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 4,700 shares of company stock valued at $1,105,065 over the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on NSC shares. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 13th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.24.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $252.76 on Friday. 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 stock has a market cap of $57.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.70, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a 50-day moving average of $235.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $238.32. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $183.09 and a one year high of $263.66.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 86.96%.

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.