Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Bought by Gries Financial LLC

Gries Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 8.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,435 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 107 shares during the quarter. Gries Financial LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $337,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.8% during the third quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,265 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $563,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 1,749 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 1,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Archer Investment Corp increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 1,934 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Loop Capital raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.74.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $257.50 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $249.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $248.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60. The stock has a market cap of $58.26 billion, a PE ratio of 24.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. As a group, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.70%.

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.