Sandy Spring Bank Sells 433 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Sandy Spring Bank decreased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,445 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 433 shares during the period. Sandy Spring Bank’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $3,860,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Atlantic Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on NSC shares. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $293.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.95.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere bought 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $233.45 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $246.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $250.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market cap of $52.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.19, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly 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 return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. As a group, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.71%.

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.