Russell Investments Group Ltd. Increases Stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 200,138 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,922 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.09% of Norfolk Southern worth $51,230,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 423.8% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 110 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 58.5% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 130 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 30.5% during the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 184 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $282.97 per share, with a total value of $466,900.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,395,640. This trade represents a 15.94% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Anil Bhatt sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.60, for a total transaction of $253,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 1,413 shares in the company, valued at $397,900.80. This represents a 38.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 24th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $321.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $301.10.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC opened at $290.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a fifty day moving average of $288.42 and a 200 day moving average of $273.07. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $201.63 and a fifty-two week high of $302.24.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.31 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.25 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.19%.

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.