Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Shares Sold by Legal & General Group Plc

Legal & General Group Plc reduced its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,734,884 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 9,190 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $500,896,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 207.1% in the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 933.3% in the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 93 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MMA Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Norfolk Southern from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $296.00 to $292.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $319.83.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.3%

NSC opened at $313.72 on Tuesday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52 week low of $236.37 and a 52 week high of $323.37. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $301.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $297.50. The firm has a market cap of $70.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.43, a P/E/G ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.69 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.49%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.