Zacks Research Expects Reduced Earnings for Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) – Research analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q4 2024 earnings per share estimates for Norfolk Southern in a research report issued on Monday, November 11th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the railroad operator will post earnings of $2.94 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $3.03. The consensus estimate for Norfolk Southern’s current full-year earnings is $11.81 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Norfolk Southern’s Q1 2025 earnings at $2.85 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $3.38 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $3.40 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $3.31 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $12.92 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $3.44 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $3.76 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $3.69 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $14.19 EPS.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on NSC. Barclays upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Benchmark upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.89.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $267.45 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $60.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $252.07 and its 200-day moving average is $238.05. Norfolk Southern has a 1-year low of $195.76 and a 1-year high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.65 earnings per share.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $819,553,000 after purchasing an additional 3,280,579 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 157.1% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $735,749,000 after purchasing an additional 1,766,135 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,001,490,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088,072 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $222,025,000 after purchasing an additional 889,925 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $720,626,000 after acquiring an additional 496,088 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

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

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

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

About Norfolk Southern

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.