Barclays Boosts Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target to $290.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its target price lifted by Barclays from $275.00 to $290.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on NSC. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.16.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $251.09 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $249.01 and its 200-day moving average is $236.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.77 billion, a PE ratio of 23.58, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern has a 52 week low of $183.76 and a 52 week high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern will post 11.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 50.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $371,077.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 3,700 shares of company stock worth $921,565 over the last ninety days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 14,236 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,365,000 after purchasing an additional 1,724 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 8.9% in 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 acquiring an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Trajan Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 31,509 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $7,830,000 after acquiring an additional 4,279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $222,025,000 after acquiring an additional 889,925 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Norfolk Southern

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.