SRS Capital Advisors Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 63.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,393 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 542 shares during the period. SRS Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $329,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Provence Wealth Management Group purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 662.5% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at $32,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock traded up $1.75 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $235.55. 1,072,692 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,327,953. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $183.09 and a 1 year high of $263.66. The business has a fifty day moving average of $250.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $233.40. The company has a market capitalization of $53.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.32 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Barclays raised Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $305.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Norfolk Southern from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $272.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $185.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.32.

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.