WealthPLAN Partners LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

WealthPLAN Partners LLC lowered its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,671 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 78 shares during the period. WealthPLAN Partners LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $359,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,840 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $672,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth $206,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 22.6% during the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,339 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,262,000 after buying an additional 983 shares during the last quarter. Associated Banc Corp purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $210,000. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 22,021 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,206,000 after acquiring an additional 3,143 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Benchmark raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.24.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.3 %

NSC stock opened at $246.24 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $241.67 and a 200 day moving average of $237.89. The firm has a market cap of $55.63 billion, a PE ratio of 39.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $183.09 and a twelve month high of $263.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.95 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at $1,887,655. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 700 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,887,655. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was bought at an average price of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $742,440. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% 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.