Tufton Capital Management Lowers Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Tufton Capital Management cut its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 3.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 36,873 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,359 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern accounts for about 1.8% of Tufton Capital Management’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Tufton Capital Management’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $8,716,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Provence Wealth Management Group acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 662.5% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Worth Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $272.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. TheStreet raised Norfolk Southern from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.74.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC traded up $4.22 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $243.56. The stock had a trading volume of 201,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,265,261. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.24. The company has a market cap of $59.97 billion, a PE ratio of 30.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. The company’s 50 day moving average is $253.51 and its 200-day moving average is $230.38.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.04). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 21.06% and a net margin of 15.03%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.98 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.33%.

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.