Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Grows Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 31.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,631 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,121 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $7,700,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 68.9% in the third quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 103 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 58.5% during the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 130 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at $35,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Anil Bhatt sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were 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 directly owned 1,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $397,900.80. The trade was a 38.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $282.97 per share, for a total transaction of $466,900.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,395,640. The trade was a 15.94% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 4,454 shares of company stock worth $1,259,874. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on NSC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $354.00 to $297.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $293.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $235.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Zacks Research cut Norfolk Southern from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $299.95.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $287.12 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.97 and a beta of 1.33. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1-year low of $201.63 and a 1-year high of $302.24. The company’s 50-day moving average is $289.00 and its 200 day moving average is $282.75.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by ($0.01). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.25 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 (DPR) is presently 41.19%.

Norfolk Southern 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.