First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Buys 786 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. increased its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 16.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,463 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 786 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,392,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 662.5% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at about $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on NSC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Barclays reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $245.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $277.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.89.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.3 %

Norfolk Southern stock traded up $0.75 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $216.30. The company had a trading volume of 410,016 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,100,940. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12 month low of $183.09 and a 12 month high of $263.66. The company has a market capitalization of $48.86 billion, a PE ratio of 34.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.32. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $225.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $238.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.32 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 86.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $1,902,593.47. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total transaction of $1,902,593.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.