Allstate Corp Acquires New Shares in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Allstate Corp bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 6,712 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,575,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. United Bank grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 8,875 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,205,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 40.9% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,059 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,257,000 after purchasing an additional 1,469 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 7.4% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 44,979 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $11,177,000 after buying an additional 3,096 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 45,945 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $11,418,000 after buying an additional 1,704 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 1,393 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $346,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 2.0 %

NYSE:NSC opened at $230.41 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $206.71 and a one year high of $277.60. The company has a market cap of $52.17 billion, a PE ratio of 19.93, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $245.28 and a 200-day moving average of $249.05.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend 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%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on NSC. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Robert W. Baird increased 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. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were bought at an average cost 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. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.