Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Stake Raised by Crestwood Advisors Group LLC

Crestwood Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,452 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on NSC. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. 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. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.11.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.6 %

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $243.75 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $55.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $245.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $250.79. 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. As a group, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 46.71%.

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.