Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 14.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,970 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,350 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,980,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Boston Partners boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 157.1% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $735,749,000 after acquiring an additional 1,766,135 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,001,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,072 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $222,025,000 after acquiring an additional 889,925 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $720,626,000 after buying an additional 496,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 10.2% in the first quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,752,050 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $956,285,000 after acquiring an additional 347,852 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,550,000. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $267.45 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $252.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $238.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $195.76 and a 52-week high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of several research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.89.

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.