Checchi Capital Advisers LLC Reduces Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Checchi Capital Advisers LLC trimmed its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,788 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 80 shares during the quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $599,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 68.3% during the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 2,079 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $491,000 after buying an additional 844 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 5,516 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,304,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 190,945 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $45,137,000 after purchasing an additional 21,532 shares during the period. Kapstone Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at about $212,000. Finally, Fiduciary Group LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 9,986 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,360,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Susquehanna upped their price target 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. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Barclays lowered their price target 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, Benchmark upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at $1,887,655. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at $1,887,655. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 directly owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have purchased 4,700 shares of company stock worth $1,105,065. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE:NSC traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $249.27. The stock had a trading volume of 628,336 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,267,495. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $230.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $238.06. The company has a market cap of $56.31 billion, a PE ratio of 40.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.32.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.95 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

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.