New York State Common Retirement Fund Sells 3,000 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

New York State Common Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 1.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 260,820 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 3,000 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.12% of Norfolk Southern worth $66,762,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. West Family Investments Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth about $260,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 23,392 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,988,000 after purchasing an additional 714 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $613,255,000. Level Four Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 7.5% in the second quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,764 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $708,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.3% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 29,449 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $7,538,000 after purchasing an additional 1,473 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $292.09 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $65.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.86. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52 week low of $201.63 and a 52 week high of $302.24. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $288.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $273.67.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The firm’s revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $347.00 to $333.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 25th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $301.10.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $281.86 per share, for a total transaction of $732,836.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,973,020. This represents a 59.09% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $282.97 per share, with a total value of $466,900.50. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,395,640. This trade represents a 15.94% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.