Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC Trims Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC decreased its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 3.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 67,114 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,300 shares during the period. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $20,917,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,272,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 43,408 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $12,533,000 after acquiring an additional 3,887 shares during the period. GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 49.3% in the fourth quarter. GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. now owns 50,620 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $14,615,000 after acquiring an additional 16,720 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 138,194 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $39,899,000 after acquiring an additional 10,910 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 54.4% during the fourth quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 51,112 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $14,757,000 after acquiring an additional 18,012 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $360.00 to $320.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.35.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:NSC opened at $340.24 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12-month low of $268.23 and a 12-month high of $342.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $314.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $304.41. The firm has a market cap of $76.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.66, a PEG ratio of 6.18 and a beta of 1.27.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.69 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.24 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.49%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

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.