HTLF Bank Makes New Investment in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

HTLF Bank bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,464 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $582,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 9.2% during the first quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 852 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $220,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter worth $81,000. United Bank boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.0% during the first quarter. United Bank now owns 7,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,162,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 4.6% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,640 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,464,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 13.3% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,946 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $555,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $185.00 to $175.00 in a report on Monday, January 29th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.74.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $241.28 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.41 billion, a PE ratio of 30.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $252.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $230.80.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.04). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 21.06% and a net margin of 15.03%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.42 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 67.33%.

Norfolk Southern 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.