Radnor Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Radnor Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 17.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 5,216 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,075 shares during the period. Radnor Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,224,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4,336.9% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 4,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,056,000 after buying an additional 4,814 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 16.9% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 601,343 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $129,102,000 after acquiring an additional 86,726 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 7.4% in the second quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 4,608 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $989,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 464,800 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $99,788,000 after purchasing an additional 25,200 shares during the period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,011,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $238.80 on Wednesday. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $252.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $246.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.03 billion, a PE ratio of 22.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 50.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,979.50. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Benchmark lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.68.

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.