abrdn plc Sells 24,094 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

abrdn plc reduced its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 380,572 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 24,094 shares during the period. abrdn plc owned about 0.17% of Norfolk Southern worth $89,339,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $646,271.82. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Loop Capital downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a research note on Monday. Susquehanna lowered their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $253.14 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The company has a market cap of $57.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.35. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $206.71 and a 52 week high of $277.60. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $248.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $249.29.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. Research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

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.