GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. Takes Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,264 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $299,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake 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 during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Provence Wealth Management Group purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 317.1% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 146 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock traded down $5.08 during trading on Monday, hitting $230.47. 1,605,619 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,327,833. The stock has a market cap of $52.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $249.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $233.98. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.32 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.34%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective 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. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of 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. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.