Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Cuts Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 28.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,263 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 908 shares during the quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $531,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.4% during the third quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 1,749 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $435,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Archer Investment Corp increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.3% during the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 1,934 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Albert D Mason Inc. increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 6,881 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,615,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 960 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,507 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $588,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.95.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $243.89 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60. The company has a market capitalization of $55.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $250.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.71%.

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.