Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target Raised to $305.00 at Barclays

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective increased by analysts at Barclays from $290.00 to $305.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Barclays‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 15.20% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $264.76 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $252.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $238.46. Norfolk Southern has a 52-week low of $204.90 and a 52-week high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. The trade was a 11.11 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 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 transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This represents a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $819,553,000 after purchasing an additional 3,280,579 shares in the last quarter. 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 worth $735,749,000 after buying an additional 1,766,135 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,001,490,000 after buying an additional 1,088,072 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $222,025,000 after acquiring an additional 889,925 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 48.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $671,532,000 after acquiring an additional 881,415 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

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.