Soltis Investment Advisors LLC Purchases 87 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Soltis Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,160 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $507,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 255,200 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $63,417,000 after buying an additional 8,844 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 20.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,428 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,556,000 after buying an additional 2,453 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 533,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $132,565,000 after buying an additional 3,621 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $222,025,000 after buying an additional 889,925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,796,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on NSC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating 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. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $253.63 on Tuesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $57.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $246.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $250.03. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. Equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 46.71%.

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.