883 Shares in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Acquired by Childress Capital Advisors LLC

Childress Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 883 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost 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 $646,271.82. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $253.14 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $57.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.35. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $248.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $249.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

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, equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.11.

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.