Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV Sells 99 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV decreased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 3.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,458 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 99 shares during the period. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $611,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 22,763 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,381,000 after purchasing an additional 944 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 30,603 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $7,234,000 after acquiring an additional 2,301 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 14,960 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,536,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 132.5% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 29,130 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,886,000 after purchasing an additional 16,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 10,049 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,375,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on NSC shares. Benchmark raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $266.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $247.92 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The business’s 50 day moving average is $246.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $237.18. The company has a market capitalization of $56.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.95 EPS. Analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

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.