Zacks Investment Management Takes Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Zacks Investment Management purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 191,884 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $45,035,000. Zacks Investment Management owned approximately 0.08% of Norfolk Southern as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Albert D Mason Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 6,881 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,615,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 960 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,507 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $588,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,816 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,365,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Shayne & Jacobs LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Shayne & Jacobs LLC now owns 3,327 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $781,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere bought 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $293.00 price objective for the company. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $268.79.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 1.6 %

NSC opened at $217.76 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12 month low of $201.63 and a 12 month high of $277.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $235.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $246.36.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS 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, research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.71%.

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.