Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target Raised to $280.00

by · The Cerbat Gem

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC – Free Report) had its target price hoisted by Wells Fargo & Company from $270.00 to $280.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on NSC. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $274.16.

Get Our Latest Analysis on NSC

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.9 %

NSC opened at $251.09 on Wednesday. Norfolk Southern has a 12 month low of $183.76 and a 12 month high of $263.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $249.22 and a 200 day moving average of $236.88. The firm has a market cap of $56.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern will post 11.78 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,887,655. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at $1,887,655. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $88,529.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders bought 3,700 shares of company stock valued at $921,565. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 14,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,365,000 after acquiring an additional 1,724 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 7,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,766,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Trajan Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 15.7% in the third quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 31,509 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $7,830,000 after purchasing an additional 4,279 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $222,025,000 after purchasing an additional 889,925 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

About Norfolk Southern

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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.

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