Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Given New $259.00 Price Target at TD Cowen

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective increased by TD Cowen from $253.00 to $259.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a hold rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Susquehanna raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Benchmark increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned 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 $274.16.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $256.98 on Wednesday. Norfolk Southern has a 52-week low of $183.09 and a 52-week high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.06 billion, a PE ratio of 41.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $248.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $236.88.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.65 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In related news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,887,655. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Boston Partners boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 157.1% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $735,749,000 after purchasing an additional 1,766,135 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position 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 valued at $5,001,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,072 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the second 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 in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 10.2% in the 1st quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,752,050 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $956,285,000 after purchasing an additional 347,852 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 23,037.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 349,143 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $86,762,000 after purchasing an additional 347,634 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

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.