1,500 Shares in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Acquired by Bayesian Capital Management LP

Bayesian Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,500 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $352,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Atlantic Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on NSC. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $269.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays cut their target price on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $293.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.10.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $220.11 on Thursday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $201.63 and a 1 year 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. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $226.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $243.36. The firm has a market cap of $49.62 billion, a PE ratio of 19.04, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.72 by ($0.03). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.49 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 36.89%.

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.