1,770 Shares in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Purchased by Meridian Wealth Management LLC

Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,770 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $440,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $268.95 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The business has a fifty day moving average of $253.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $239.96. The stock has a market cap of $60.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.25, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $206.71 and a 52-week high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.65 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $263.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Benchmark boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.