Krilogy Financial LLC Makes New Investment in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Krilogy Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 4,754 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,335,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,561,273 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,263,069,000 after acquiring an additional 239,914 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.8% in the second quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 10,859,121 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,779,609,000 after purchasing an additional 192,567 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,822,075 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,228,064,000 after purchasing an additional 36,362 shares during the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% in the second quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 4,182,921 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,070,702,000 after purchasing an additional 184,586 shares during the period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,289,431 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $841,994,000 after buying an additional 201,861 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NSC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Wolfe Research raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $361.00 to $368.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $354.00 to $297.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $304.47.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.9%

NYSE NSC opened at $314.56 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market cap of $70.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.67, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a 50 day moving average of $293.35 and a 200-day moving average of $287.74. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1-year low of $201.63 and a 1-year high of $319.94.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.46. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.78% and a net margin of 23.59%.The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.04 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 6th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.35%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director William Jr. Clyburn purchased 204 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $294.79 per share, with a total value of $60,137.16. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 405 shares in the company, valued at $119,389.95. This trade represents a 101.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Anil Bhatt sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.60, for a total transaction of $253,440.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $397,900.80. This represents a 38.91% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.