Highland Capital Management LLC Sells 1,000 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Highland Capital Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 18,824 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $4,678,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.8% in the third quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,265 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. now owns 1,516 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $325,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Blue Chip Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 7,716 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,656,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 12.4% during the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 381 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.2% during the third quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:NSC opened at $251.09 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $56.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $183.76 and a twelve month high of $263.66. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $249.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $236.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.65 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 50.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was bought at an average price of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,000. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 3,700 shares of company stock valued at $921,565 in the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on NSC. Benchmark boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.16.

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.