Dakota Wealth Management Increases Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Dakota Wealth Management raised its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,206 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Dakota Wealth Management’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,791,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $251.09 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $183.76 and a one year high of $263.66. The company has a market capitalization of $56.77 billion, a PE ratio of 23.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $249.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.00.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on NSC. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. 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, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $274.16.

Insider Activity

In other Norfolk Southern 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 of the company’s stock, 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. In related 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern 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 trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have purchased 3,700 shares of company stock valued at $921,565 over the last ninety days. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.