Lyell Wealth Management LP Makes New Investment in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Lyell Wealth Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,300 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $307,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. MCF Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,016 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $240,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 7,456 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,762,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 2,145 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Cadinha & Co. LLC now owns 1,896 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 4,403 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,041,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 target price on the stock. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $277.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday. Barclays upgraded Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $305.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.32.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC traded up $4.58 on Thursday, hitting $240.80. 1,413,282 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,280,564. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $183.09 and a 52 week high of $263.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $252.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $232.12. The company has a market cap of $59.29 billion, a PE ratio of 29.40, a PEG ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 15.03% and a return on equity of 21.06%. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.32 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.33%.

Norfolk Southern 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.