Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Stock Position Boosted by Creative Planning

Creative Planning boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,847 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 1,161 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $18,001,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Richard H. Anderson purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were bought at an average price of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $742,440. 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 $248.50 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $245.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $237.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $183.09 and a 52-week high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Benchmark upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $265.17.

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.