Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Shares Purchased by Capula Management Ltd

Capula Management Ltd grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 189.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 144,749 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 94,749 shares during the quarter. Norfolk Southern comprises 0.3% of Capula Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Capula Management Ltd owned 0.06% of Norfolk Southern worth $41,543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,825,837 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,012,836,000 after purchasing an additional 272,651 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,710,549 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,803,630,000 after buying an additional 379,819 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,878,029 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,401,797,000 after buying an additional 36,205 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $1,084,701,000. Finally, Pentwater Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP now owns 3,019,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $871,646,000 after buying an additional 269,000 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $347.70 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $316.67 and a 200-day moving average of $305.84. The company has a market cap of $78.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.29, a P/E/G ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a one year low of $268.23 and a one year high of $358.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on NSC. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $360.00 to $320.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $331.29.

Trending Headlines about Norfolk Southern

Here are the key news stories impacting Norfolk Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Norfolk Southern reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.52 per share, topping estimates, while revenue rose to a record roughly $3.5 billion and increased 12.5% year over year. Article: Norfolk Southern (NSC) Q2 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management pointed to stronger freight demand, higher fuel surcharges, volume growth, and intermodal gains as key drivers of the quarter, which helped boost investor confidence in operating momentum. Article: Norfolk Southern rides freight demand, fuel surcharges to quarterly profit beat
• Positive Sentiment: The company said it achieved record quarterly revenue, and several outlets noted the stock rose as the revenue surge and earnings beat outweighed margin compression. Article: Norfolk Southern Stock Rises as Revenue Surge Offsets Margin Compression
• Neutral Sentiment: Norfolk Southern also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, reinforcing shareholder returns but not changing the main earnings-driven stock move. Article: Norfolk Southern earnings report and conference call

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.