Lokken Investment Group LLC Cuts Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Lokken Investment Group LLC reduced its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 14.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 872 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 152 shares during the period. Lokken Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 255,200 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $63,417,000 after purchasing an additional 8,844 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $1,796,000. Grandview Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth $918,000. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 5,678 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,333,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the period. Finally, Clarendon Private LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at $309,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 2.9 %

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $237.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $53.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.52, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $245.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $248.93.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. Equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Loop Capital cut shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $274.84.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.