Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC Trims Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC cut its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 10,675 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,653,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,001,490,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088,072 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,986,180 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,525,699,000 after acquiring an additional 124,362 shares during the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,789,436 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $813,554,000 after acquiring an additional 37,386 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $720,626,000 after acquiring an additional 496,088 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 157.1% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $735,749,000 after acquiring an additional 1,766,135 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $250.09 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $56.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $190.01 and a 1 year high of $263.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $250.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $237.10.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.65 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 50.70%.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,550,000. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NSC. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One 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, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.16.

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.