Stephens Inc. AR Raises Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Stephens Inc. AR boosted its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,340 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,192,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter worth about $32,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on NSC. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Loop Capital lowered Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna cut their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.11.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at $646,271.82. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $256.53 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $246.13 and a 200 day moving average of $250.24. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $206.71 and a 52-week high of $277.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.04 billion, a PE ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (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, research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.71%.

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.