Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Makes New Investment in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 48,630 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $15,299,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,216 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $929,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $318,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Bar Harbor Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 6,290 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Apollon Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Apollon Financial LLC now owns 881 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $253,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 827 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.0%

NSC stock opened at $350.77 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $78.79 billion, a PE ratio of 29.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.21 and a beta of 1.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $328.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $313.47. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $268.23 and a fifty-two week high of $358.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.29 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NSC. Stephens raised shares of Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Norfolk Southern from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $337.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $348.00.

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.