Analysts Set Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Price Target at $275.68

Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $275.68.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NSC. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $263.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,550,000. The trade was a 11.11 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NSC. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 3,859 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $906,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 45,033 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $11,191,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 21,409 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,025,000 after buying an additional 440 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 18,940 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,451,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 27.6% in the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,540 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,300,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $233.62 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $253.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $245.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Norfolk Southern has a twelve month low of $206.71 and a twelve month high of $277.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.65 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.70%.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.