Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Holdings Trimmed by Rockland Trust Co.

Rockland Trust Co. reduced its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 20.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,059 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 523 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $483,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Oak Thistle LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 260.4% in the 4th quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 7,079 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,661,000 after acquiring an additional 5,115 shares in the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,499 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $586,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Accurate Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth approximately $357,000. Mayfair Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Mayfair Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,001 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,174,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Signal Advisors Wealth LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 960 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $225,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $240.55 on Thursday. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $252.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $246.23. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on NSC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $275.68.

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.