GAMMA Investing LLC Has $648,000 Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 111.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,016 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,593 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Rational Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 can be accessed through this link. In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Richard H. Anderson acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $742,440. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 9,650 shares of company stock worth $2,182,110. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC traded down $1.69 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $243.41. 1,254,989 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,289,739. 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 quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.63. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $224.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $238.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.04 billion, a PE ratio of 39.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.32.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.95 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on NSC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective 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. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. UBS Group cut 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. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $264.24.

About Norfolk Southern

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.