Successful Portfolios LLC Sells 109 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Successful Portfolios LLC reduced its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 4.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,568 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 109 shares during the quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $655,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 662.5% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at about $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $277.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.89.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $214.69 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $227.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $239.01. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $183.09 and a fifty-two week high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $48.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.57, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.32.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.32 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.52%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.96%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total transaction of $1,902,593.47. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,534,750. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.