Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Takes Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 580 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $144,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.8% during the second quarter. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. now owns 1,516 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.5% during the second quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 7,716 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,656,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 12.4% during the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 381 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO boosted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Csenge Advisory Group boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.9% during the first quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 1,153 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $294,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 4.9 %

NSC stock opened at $260.43 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $248.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $236.73. 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS 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 business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.95 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $742,440. The trade was a 200.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on NSC. Wells Fargo & Company increased 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. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Benchmark increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $266.61.

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.