UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Boosts Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 229.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,598 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,598 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,682,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 956 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,016 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $240,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 9,986 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,360,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 7,456 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,762,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 1,679 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $239.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $270.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $263.53.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Claude Mongeau bought 5,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $221.00 per share, with a total value of $1,248,650.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,420,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC traded down $2.94 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $221.34. 1,479,314 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,296,044. The company has a market cap of $50.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.32. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $222.70 and a 200 day moving average of $237.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.