Zacks Research Cuts Earnings Estimates for Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q2 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Norfolk Southern in a report released on Tuesday, February 18th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the railroad operator will post earnings of $3.26 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $3.38. The consensus estimate for Norfolk Southern’s current full-year earnings is $13.02 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Norfolk Southern’s Q1 2026 earnings at $3.51 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $3.91 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $3.68 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $14.72 EPS.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Loop Capital cut Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC opened at $249.40 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $245.43 and a 200 day moving average of $250.60. Norfolk Southern has a 52-week low of $206.71 and a 52-week high of $277.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market cap of $56.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.57, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,089,164 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,714,927,000 after buying an additional 139,485 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,318,716,000 after buying an additional 196,249 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,608,080 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,020,318,000 after buying an additional 918,559 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,694,573 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,098,472,000 after buying an additional 113,648 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,020,392 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $945,385,000 after purchasing an additional 580,293 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere bought 607 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

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.