Mcdonald Partners LLC Reduces Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Mcdonald Partners LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,200 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 175 shares during the period. Mcdonald Partners LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $516,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $258.37 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $206.71 and a 1 year high of $277.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.35. The business has a fifty day moving average of $245.37 and a 200 day moving average of $250.62.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.71%.

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.