First National Bank of Omaha Makes New Investment in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

First National Bank of Omaha purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,021 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,273,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $27,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Bayban acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on NSC. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $351.00 to $376.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $337.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NSC stock opened at $345.56 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $77.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.00 and a beta of 1.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $326.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $312.66. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $268.23 and a fifty-two week high of $358.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.38 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The firm’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.29 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 46.08%.

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.