Independence Bank of Kentucky Has $1.30 Million Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Independence Bank of Kentucky lessened its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 31.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,329 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,945 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,300,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth about $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 423.8% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 110 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 58.5% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 130 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $298.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $354.00 to $297.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $316.00 to $307.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $299.40.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $291.39 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $287.84 and a 200-day moving average of $278.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $65.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.39 and a beta of 1.32. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1 year low of $201.63 and a 1 year high of $302.24.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.31 by ($0.01). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.25 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 41.19%.

Insider Activity

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director William Jr. Clyburn purchased 204 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $294.79 per share, for a total transaction of $60,137.16. Following the acquisition, the director owned 405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $119,389.95. The trade was a 101.49% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Richard H. Anderson acquired 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $281.86 per share, with a total value of $732,836.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,973,020. This represents a 59.09% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders acquired 4,454 shares of company stock worth $1,259,874 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.