Deutsche Bank AG Invests $356.56 Million in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 1,133,406 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $356,558,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 3,090 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,216 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $929,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $318,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 6,290 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Apollon Financial LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.3% during the first quarter. Apollon Financial LLC now owns 881 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NSC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $316.00 to $338.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings raised Norfolk Southern from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $351.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $360.00 to $377.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.9%

NSC stock opened at $340.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $76.57 billion, a PE ratio of 29.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 1.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $325.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $311.88. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $268.23 and a fifty-two week high of $358.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.29 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.08%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.