Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 2,000 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lowered its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 25,062 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $5,882,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $243.75 on Tuesday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60. The company’s 50-day moving average is $245.47 and its 200 day moving average is $250.79. 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 market capitalization of $55.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results 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 net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on NSC. Stephens raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.11.

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.