Chesapeake Wealth Management Decreases Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Chesapeake Wealth Management reduced its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 3.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,966 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 101 shares during the quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $637,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 11.5% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 303,809 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $65,222,000 after purchasing an additional 31,279 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 16,496 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,542,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 45,945 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $9,864,000 after buying an additional 2,100 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 14.1% in the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,007 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,719,000 after buying an additional 990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 10,269 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,205,000 after buying an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE NSC opened at $247.85 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $243.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $237.99. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $183.09 and a twelve month high of $263.66. The company has a market capitalization of $55.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.91, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.95 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.96%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $742,440. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NSC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Benchmark lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $264.24.

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.