Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC Has $1.57 Million Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC lowered its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,703 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 131 shares during the quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,573,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 255,200 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $63,417,000 after buying an additional 8,844 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $310,000. United Bank increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 8,875 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,205,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,921 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $726,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $243.89 on Monday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $206.71 and a 52-week high of $277.60. The company has a market capitalization of $55.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $250.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. Sell-side 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. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna lowered their price objective 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. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital cut Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $276.95.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.