Levin Capital Strategies L.P. Takes $285,000 Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Levin Capital Strategies L.P. acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,120 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $285,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.1 %

Norfolk Southern stock traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $249.54. The stock had a trading volume of 918,296 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,317,632. The company has a market capitalization of $56.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.18, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $223.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $237.90. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $183.09 and a one year high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.95 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. 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. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.24.

Insider Activity

In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was bought at an average price of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $742,440. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders bought 9,650 shares of company stock worth $2,182,110. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by 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.