Neo Ivy Capital Management Invests $1.80 Million in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 6,002 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,803,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth $613,255,000. Holocene Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 550.6% in the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 983,366 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $251,712,000 after purchasing an additional 832,210 shares in the last quarter. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at about $181,995,000. Alpine Associates Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $150,989,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 93.1% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 952,544 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $286,154,000 after buying an additional 459,166 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $303.02 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12 month low of $201.63 and a 12 month high of $319.94. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $300.10 and its 200-day moving average is $291.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $68.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.61 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 23.59% and a return on equity of 18.78%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.04 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on NSC shares. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $317.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley raised Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Evercore lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $299.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $361.00 to $368.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $304.47.

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.