Wells Fargo & Company Increases Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target to $365.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its target price raised by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $350.00 to $365.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 13.82% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $322.00 to $313.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Susquehanna upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $330.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $360.00 to $320.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $322.83.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $320.69 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $312.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $302.41. Norfolk Southern has a twelve month low of $257.49 and a twelve month high of $326.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.11, a P/E/G ratio of 5.94 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.69 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern will post 12.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at $3,272,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 43,408 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $12,533,000 after purchasing an additional 3,887 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $184,752,000. Angelo Gordon & CO. L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,464,000. Finally, Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 126.6% in the 3rd quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 15,413 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,630,000 after acquiring an additional 8,612 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

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.