Glenmede Trust Co. NA Trims Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Glenmede Trust Co. NA cut its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 3.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,805 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,526 shares during the period. Glenmede Trust Co. NA’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $11,880,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $819,553,000 after purchasing an additional 3,280,579 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $222,025,000 after buying an additional 889,925 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 48.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $671,532,000 after buying an additional 881,415 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $720,626,000 after acquiring an additional 496,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 23,037.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 349,143 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $86,762,000 after acquiring an additional 347,634 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on NSC shares. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $276.10 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $206.71 and a 12-month high of $277.60. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $256.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $241.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.92, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its 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 company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.65 EPS. Analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

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.