OneAscent Financial Services LLC Trims Stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

OneAscent Financial Services LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 75.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 697 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,199 shares during the quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $209,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NSC. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $613,255,000. Holocene Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 550.6% during the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 983,366 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $251,712,000 after acquiring an additional 832,210 shares during the last quarter. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth $181,995,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 93.1% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 952,544 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $286,154,000 after acquiring an additional 459,166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 25,497.0% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 428,750 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $109,747,000 after acquiring an additional 427,075 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $347.00 to $333.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, October 27th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $293.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, December 5th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $303.52.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $284.78 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $290.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $285.43. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12 month low of $201.63 and a 12 month high of $302.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.90 billion, a PE ratio of 21.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 1.33.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 6th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $282.97 per share, with a total value of $466,900.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,395,640. The trade was a 15.94% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Anil Bhatt sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.60, for a total value of $253,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

About Norfolk Southern

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.