Pittenger & Anderson Inc. Boosts Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Pittenger & Anderson Inc. lifted its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.1% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 15,414 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. Pittenger & Anderson Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $3,830,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter worth $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth about $31,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.16.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,550,000. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $255.73 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $250.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.10. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $192.53 and a 52-week high of $263.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

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.