Haverford Trust Co Buys New Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Haverford Trust Co bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 12,395 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $3,899,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $5,033,549,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $1,084,701,000. Pentwater Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $826,128,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth $364,414,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth $356,558,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $350.77 on Friday. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $328.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $313.31. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52-week low of $268.23 and a 52-week high of $358.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.93, a P/E/G ratio of 6.21 and a beta of 1.27.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.21% and a net margin of 21.02%.The company had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.38 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.29 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Stephens upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $348.00.

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.