Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,960 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $4,285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 956 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $226,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. now owns 1,516 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.5% during the second quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 7,716 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,656,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 12.4% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 381 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 3.0% in the first quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 1,477 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $247.48 per share, with a total value of $494,960.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $742,440. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Richard H. Anderson purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $247.48 per share, with a total value of $494,960.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $742,440. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,887,655. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Susquehanna raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.24.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $247.86 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $56.00 billion, a PE ratio of 39.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $243.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $237.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

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

About Norfolk Southern

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.