Vestcor Inc Boosts Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Vestcor Inc raised its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 775.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,513 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,000 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $11,870,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 5,986 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,798,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 75.0% during the third quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 84 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,008 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $603,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,042 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $613,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NSC has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $340.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $347.00 to $333.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $342.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eighteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $308.95.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $303.02 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $68.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a 50 day moving average of $300.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $291.64. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52-week low of $201.63 and a 52-week high of $319.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.35%.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.