Trust Co. of Vermont Takes Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 29,400 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $9,249,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 239.3% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 95 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Bayban acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on NSC shares. TD Cowen increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $337.00 to $376.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Evercore set a $358.00 price target on Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $363.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $316.00 to $338.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $337.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE NSC opened at $340.90 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $325.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $311.88. The company has a market capitalization of $76.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 1.27. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12 month low of $268.23 and a 12 month high of $358.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.29 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.08%.

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.