Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 3,200 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund trimmed its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 52,712 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 3,200 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $15,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,515 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $726,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 791 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 3,090 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,216 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $929,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quotient Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 864 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC stock opened at $313.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $305.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $299.07. The company has a market capitalization of $70.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.44, a PEG ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 1.27. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1-year low of $247.85 and a 1-year high of $326.00.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 45.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Zacks Research upgraded Norfolk Southern from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Argus upgraded Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $322.71.

About Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.