Verus Financial Partners Inc. Sells 106 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Verus Financial Partners Inc. cut its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,973 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 106 shares during the period. Verus Financial Partners Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,933,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $1,444,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 200.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 16,077 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,198,000 after purchasing an additional 10,719 shares in the last quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,973,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 187,259 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $36,877,000 after acquiring an additional 16,727 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. UBS Group cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.32.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 2.9 %

NYSE:NSC traded down $6.65 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $225.49. 2,840,324 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,341,804. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $248.82 and its 200-day moving average is $234.41. 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 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The firm 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 company posted $3.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.39%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 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.