Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Shares Purchased by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 467,780 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 35,209 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $119,738,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.3% in the second quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $420,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Horan Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 1,764 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,466 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $375,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,429 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $622,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gilbert & Cook Inc. raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,430 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $622,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NSC. UBS Group reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $321.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $298.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $299.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,600 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $281.86 per share, with a total value of $732,836.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,973,020. This trade represents a 59.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $282.97 per share, with a total value of $466,900.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,395,640. This represents a 15.94% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $284.23 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a twelve month low of $201.63 and a twelve month high of $302.24. The stock has a market cap of $63.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company’s fifty day moving average is $286.13 and its 200-day moving average is $267.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.31 by ($0.01). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 24.22%.The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.25 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.19%.

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.