NewEdge Wealth LLC Decreases Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

NewEdge Wealth LLC trimmed its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,743 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 116 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $3,695,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 19,400 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,553,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,772 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $651,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. LifeGoal Wealth Advisors purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $246,000. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 32.6% in the 4th quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 2,756 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $647,000 after buying an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Shayne & Jacobs LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Shayne & Jacobs LLC now owns 3,327 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $781,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $245.96 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $246.07 and a 200 day moving average of $250.77. 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 52-week low of $206.71 and a 52-week high of $277.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.69 billion, a PE ratio of 21.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost 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 approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now 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. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.