Bank & Trust Co Buys Shares of 342 Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 342 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $73,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State of Tennessee Treasury Department lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 209.3% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Treasury Department now owns 111,914 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $26,454,000 after acquiring an additional 75,729 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 37.1% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 150,998 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $35,692,000 after purchasing an additional 40,861 shares during the last quarter. Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth $608,000. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $984,000. Finally, Buckingham Strategic Wealth LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Buckingham Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 96,384 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $22,783,000 after buying an additional 6,306 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC stock traded up $4.13 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $243.81. The stock had a trading volume of 940,773 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,314,390. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $183.09 and a 52 week high of $263.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $224.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $238.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.32.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current 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 issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective 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. Barclays lowered 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, Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total transaction of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $1,902,593.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders purchased 10,350 shares of company stock worth $2,353,715 in the last 90 days. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Norfolk Southern 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.