Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20, Briefing.com reports. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.77%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 10.9 %

Shares of NYSE NSC traded up $24.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $247.22. The company had a trading volume of 2,993,456 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,060,314. The company has a market capitalization of $55.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.81, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $222.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $237.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.68. Norfolk Southern has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $277.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $264.65.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were 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 SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was acquired 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 directly 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 available through the SEC website. Also, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $1,902,593.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.