Brookstone Capital Management Sells 166 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Brookstone Capital Management decreased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,589 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 166 shares during the quarter. Brookstone Capital Management’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,637,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Atomi Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at about $214,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $220,000. Evanson Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth approximately $206,000. Axiom Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.6% in the third quarter. Axiom Advisory LLC now owns 2,304 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $553,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Werlinich Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.3% in the third quarter. Werlinich Asset Management LLC now owns 4,009 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $996,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $742,440. This trade represents a 200.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $250.17 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $246.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $236.84. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The company has a market capitalization of $56.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.95 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on NSC. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Benchmark raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $294.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.17.

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.