Rockland Trust Co. Trims Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Rockland Trust Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,582 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 50 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $642,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 22,763 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,381,000 after purchasing an additional 944 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 30,603 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $7,234,000 after buying an additional 2,301 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 14,960 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,536,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 132.5% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 29,130 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,886,000 after acquiring an additional 16,600 shares during the period. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 10,049 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,375,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 700 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction 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 trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One 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 presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $266.56.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NSC traded up $3.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $247.92. 1,173,056 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,263,570. The company has a market capitalization of $56.01 billion, a PE ratio of 39.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.31. 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 business has a 50 day moving average of $246.80 and a 200 day moving average of $237.18. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 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.