Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. decreased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,573 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 55 shares during the quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,197,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of NSC. Cedar Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $264.24.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $245.99 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.54. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $243.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $237.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.57 billion, a PE ratio of 39.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.95 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast 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. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.