Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Alaska Permanent Fund Corp

Alaska Permanent Fund Corp reduced its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 75.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 6,205 shares during the period. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $473,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $2,933,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at $1,444,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 200.1% during the third quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 16,077 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,198,000 after purchasing an additional 10,719 shares during the period. ClearBridge Investments Ltd acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at $34,973,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 9.8% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 187,259 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $36,877,000 after purchasing an additional 16,727 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.4 %

NSC stock opened at $239.94 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.64, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $251.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $232.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $183.09 and a 52 week high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.32 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $270.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $277.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $272.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $262.32.

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.