Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Stock Price

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its target price boosted by Barclays from $290.00 to $305.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

NSC has been the subject of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $263.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Benchmark raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $269.26 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $60.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.28, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern has a 12 month low of $201.44 and a 12 month high of $277.60. The company’s 50 day moving average is $252.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $238.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its 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 company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.65 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 20.5% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,428 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,556,000 after purchasing an additional 2,453 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% in 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. Seven Eight Capital LP purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth $1,676,000. Dakota Wealth Management raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the third quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 7,206 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,791,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at $13,627,000. 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.