Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target Raised to $285.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective raised by research analysts at Benchmark from $270.00 to $285.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Benchmark’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 9.43% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on NSC. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, July 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $294.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $267.44.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 4.9 %

NYSE NSC opened at $260.43 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.94, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $248.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $236.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.63. Norfolk Southern has a 52 week low of $183.09 and a 52 week high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.95 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 72.7% during the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 2,900 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $739,000 after buying an additional 1,221 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 6.4% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 41,527 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $10,584,000 after purchasing an additional 2,483 shares in the last quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 16.4% during the first quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC now owns 1,063 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 3.0% during the first quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 1,477 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the first quarter worth approximately $56,144,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.