Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Increases Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 4.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,335 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $287,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 956 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,016 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $240,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 9,986 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,360,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 1,679 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $397,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.0% in the first quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 1,477 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $376,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,534,750. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,534,750. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have acquired 10,350 shares of company stock valued at $2,353,715 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.3 %

NSC traded up $0.76 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $241.53. The company had a trading volume of 803,483 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,277,639. The company has a market cap of $54.57 billion, a PE ratio of 38.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.32. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $228.70 and a 200-day moving average of $238.37.

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 return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.95 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on NSC. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $264.24.

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.