Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Capital Group Private Client Services Inc.

Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. lowered its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 72.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 35,337 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 91,906 shares during the period. Capital Group Private Client Services Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $9,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Cedar Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Claude Mongeau acquired 5,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $221.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,248,650.00. Following the completion of the purchase, 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 company insiders.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 10.9 %

Shares of NSC stock traded up $24.25 on Friday, hitting $247.15. The stock had a trading volume of 2,993,352 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,313,437. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $222.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.36. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $183.09 and a 1 year high of $263.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.61.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.85 by $0.21. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd will be paid 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 2.18%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Loop Capital lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $264.65.

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.