Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Holdings Boosted by Creative Planning

Creative Planning boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 84,364 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 517 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $20,965,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.8% in the second quarter. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. now owns 1,516 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Blue Chip Partners LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 0.5% in the second quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 7,716 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,656,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 12.4% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 381 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 3.0% during the first quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 1,477 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $376,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Csenge Advisory Group grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 3.9% during the first quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 1,153 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $294,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 7,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,887,655. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $252.37 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $247.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $236.66. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $183.09 and a fifty-two week high of $263.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. 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 (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.95 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.14%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.17.

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.