Raymond James & Associates Grows Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 324,059 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 3,828 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $69,572,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $64,000. Zhang Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $214,000. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $245,000. Greenleaf Trust grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 7,998 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,891,000 after purchasing an additional 898 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 204.3% during the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 3,810 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $901,000 after purchasing an additional 2,558 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NSC stock opened at $240.44 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.63. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $183.09 and a fifty-two week high of $263.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.32 billion, a PE ratio of 38.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.32. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $228.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $238.54.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.95 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Claude Mongeau acquired 5,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $221.00 per share, with a total value of $1,248,650.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,420,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $247.48 per share, with a total value of $494,960.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $742,440. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Claude Mongeau purchased 5,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $221.00 per share, with a total value of $1,248,650.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $4,420,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 10,350 shares of company stock valued at $2,353,715. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $264.24.

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.