WealthTrak Capital Management LLC Acquires New Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 600 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $141,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Atlantic Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. 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 report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. One investment 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.84.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $230.41 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $52.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.93, 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $245.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $249.14.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

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 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

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.