Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC Buys Shares of 4,449 Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 4,449 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,044,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.8% during the third quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,265 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $563,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.4% during the third quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 1,749 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.2% during the third quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.8% during the third quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 1,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Archer Investment Corp grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.3% during the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 1,934 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on NSC. UBS Group upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $263.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $238.80 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $54.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.42, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $252.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $246.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $206.71 and a 12-month high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.