OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC Reduces Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC cut its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,269 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 315 shares during the quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,309,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 10.9% during the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 6,268 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,558,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 7,210 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,792,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 4,614 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,146,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.6% during the third quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 3,704 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $920,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Haverford Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 14,866 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,694,000 after buying an additional 728 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE NSC opened at $262.22 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $253.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $239.10. The stock has a market cap of $59.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $206.71 and a 12-month high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. The firm 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%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on NSC shares. Barclays boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Benchmark increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $275.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were 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 directly owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This represents a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.