Whittier Trust Co. Raises Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Whittier Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 175,948 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,958 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $43,723,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cedar Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter worth about $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at $31,000. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup started coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $294.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased 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 analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $266.17.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, 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 value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,887,655. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC stock traded down $3.81 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $248.56. The stock had a trading volume of 763,051 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,250,222. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $247.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $236.66. The company has a market cap of $56.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.95 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

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.