Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Holdings Lowered by Eagle Ridge Investment Management

Eagle Ridge Investment Management cut its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 103,350 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 138 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern makes up approximately 2.4% of Eagle Ridge Investment Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Eagle Ridge Investment Management’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $26,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NSC. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 662.5% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 122 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 317.1% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 146 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $1,902,593.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $219.25 per share, with a total value of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $1,902,593.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. UBS Group cut their target price on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $294.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.89.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE NSC traded up $1.49 on Tuesday, reaching $215.55. The stock had a trading volume of 1,040,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,326,339. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $183.09 and a 1 year high of $263.66. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $226.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $238.87. The company has a market capitalization of $48.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.32.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.32 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.