Miracle Mile Advisors LLC Grows Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 6.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,322 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 662.5% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Claude Mongeau bought 5,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $221.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,248,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $4,420,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $277.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $262.89.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NSC stock opened at $214.06 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $48.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $183.09 and a fifty-two week high of $263.66. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $227.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $239.01.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods in the United States. The company transports agriculture, forest, and consumer products comprising soybeans, wheat, corn, fertilizers, livestock and poultry feed, food products, food oils, flour, sweeteners, ethanol, lumber and wood products, pulp board and paper products, wood fibers, wood pulp, beverages, and canned goods; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products comprising crude oil, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, sand, and natural gas liquids; metals and construction materials, such as steel, aluminum products, machinery, scrap metals, cement, aggregates, minerals, clay, transportation equipment, and military-related products; and automotive, including finished motor vehicles and automotive parts, as well as coal.