Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. Sells 75 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. decreased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,375 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 75 shares during the quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,933,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $1,444,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 200.1% in the third quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 16,077 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,198,000 after acquiring an additional 10,719 shares in the last quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter worth about $34,973,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 9.8% in the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 187,259 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $36,877,000 after acquiring an additional 16,727 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE NSC traded down $0.59 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $239.35. 786,922 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,285,040. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.64, a PEG ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.68. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $183.09 and a 52-week high of $263.66. The company’s 50-day moving average is $251.83 and its 200-day moving average is $232.92.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on NSC shares. Loop Capital raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Barclays upgraded Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $305.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.32.

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.