SG Americas Securities LLC Has $665,000 Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

SG Americas Securities LLC cut its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 70.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,835 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 6,648 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $665,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth $30,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NSC. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.74.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $257.50 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $58.26 billion, a PE ratio of 24.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $249.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $248.69. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $206.71 and a one year high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. As a group, research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.