Advocate Group LLC Has $797,000 Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Advocate Group LLC lessened its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,207 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 66 shares during the quarter. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $797,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Seven Eight Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at $1,676,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth about $13,627,000. Buckingham Strategic Wealth LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Buckingham Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 96,384 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $22,783,000 after acquiring an additional 6,306 shares during the period. Broderick Brian C purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $956,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $846,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.2 %

NSC traded down $0.37 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $244.79. The company had a trading volume of 60,611 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,248,312. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $246.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $236.76. The company has a market capitalization of $55.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.48, a PEG 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. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $183.09 and a 52 week high of $263.66.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 86.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other 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 $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average cost 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. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $294.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $267.06.

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.