Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Schroder Investment Management Group

Schroder Investment Management Group cut its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 28,457 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,756 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $6,644,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,089,164 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,714,927,000 after acquiring an additional 139,485 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,318,716,000 after purchasing an additional 196,249 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,580,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,133,828,000 after purchasing an additional 62,186 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,020,392 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $945,385,000 after buying an additional 580,293 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.7% in the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,892,717 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $967,340,000 after buying an additional 103,281 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 4.5 %

NSC stock opened at $210.78 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $206.71 and a one year high of $277.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $242.94 and a 200-day moving average of $248.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.73 billion, a PE ratio of 18.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. As a group, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on NSC. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $272.74.

Norfolk Southern 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.