Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by King Luther Capital Management Corp

King Luther Capital Management Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 7.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,160 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 666 shares during the quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 157.1% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $735,749,000 after buying an additional 1,766,135 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,001,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,072 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 600.3% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,021,312 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $241,421,000 after purchasing an additional 875,473 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $720,626,000 after purchasing an additional 496,088 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1,956.8% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 451,226 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $106,661,000 after purchasing an additional 429,288 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

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

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.6 %

NYSE:NSC opened at $247.86 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $243.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $237.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.91, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.95 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on NSC. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.24.

Norfolk Southern 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.