Hoxton Planning & Management LLC Invests $583,000 in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Hoxton Planning & Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 2,347 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $583,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NSC. Cedar Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE NSC opened at $243.20 on Wednesday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $183.09 and a one year high of $263.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $236.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.94 billion, a PE ratio of 39.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.95 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.8 earnings per share for the current 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 given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $371,077.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on NSC. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 8th. TD Cowen boosted 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. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $266.56.

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.