Boston Trust Walden Corp Has $1.36 Million Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Boston Trust Walden Corp reduced its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,467 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 150 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,359,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at about $1,676,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $222,025,000 after acquiring an additional 889,925 shares during the period. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the third quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 7,206 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,791,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at about $13,627,000. Finally, Broderick Brian C bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at about $956,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were bought 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 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 purchase, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.16.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $251.09 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $249.22 and a 200-day moving average of $236.79. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $183.76 and a 1 year high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $56.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The company’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 firm posted $2.65 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

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.