Prio Wealth Limited Partnership Sells 1,621 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lessened its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 30.5% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,686 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,621 shares during the period. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $791,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the first quarter worth about $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target 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. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price 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. 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.56.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $371,077.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $247.03 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.81 billion, a PE ratio of 39.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $246.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $237.19. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $183.09 and a twelve month high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.95 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Norfolk Southern 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.