Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target Raised to $255.00 at Susquehanna

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective increased by Susquehanna from $245.00 to $255.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on NSC. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an underweight rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $239.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $264.65.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 10.9 %

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $247.15 on Friday. Norfolk Southern has a 52-week low of $183.09 and a 52-week high of $263.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.80, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $222.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $237.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.77% and a net margin of 14.85%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.95 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern will post 11.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.96%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 2,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,534,750. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Claude Mongeau acquired 5,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $221.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,248,650.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,420,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State of Tennessee Treasury Department raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 209.3% during the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Treasury Department now owns 111,914 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $26,454,000 after acquiring an additional 75,729 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 37.1% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 150,998 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $35,692,000 after buying an additional 40,861 shares during the period. Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $608,000. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $984,000. Finally, Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,442,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

About Norfolk Southern

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.