Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL

Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL cut its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,627 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Norfolk Southern comprises about 0.8% of Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,729,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,318,716,000 after purchasing an additional 196,249 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,580,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,133,828,000 after buying an additional 62,186 shares in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,892,717 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $967,340,000 after buying an additional 103,281 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $819,553,000 after buying an additional 3,280,579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 48.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $671,532,000 after buying an additional 881,415 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NSC stock opened at $243.89 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $55.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $246.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $250.85.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Loop Capital lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.95.

Norfolk Southern 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.