Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Stock Price Down 5.5% – What’s Next?

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) shares dropped 5.5% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $304.66 and last traded at $307.8420. Approximately 653,912 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 48% from the average daily volume of 1,250,536 shares. The stock had previously closed at $325.68.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wolfe Research raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Argus upgraded Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $319.83.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $69.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.16, a PEG ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $302.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $298.09.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.49%.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cullen Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 31.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cullen Capital Management LLC now owns 121,351 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $36,455,000 after acquiring an additional 29,264 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $24,033,000. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,165,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 250,186 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $75,158,000 after acquiring an additional 2,049 shares during the period. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 7.9% during the 3rd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 1,132,583 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $340,239,000 after acquiring an additional 82,500 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Norfolk Southern

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.