Whittier Trust Co. Buys 2,958 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Whittier Trust Co. lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 175,948 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,958 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. owned 0.08% of Norfolk Southern worth $43,723,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 157.1% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $735,749,000 after acquiring an additional 1,766,135 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,001,490,000 after buying an additional 1,088,072 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $720,626,000 after buying an additional 496,088 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 10.2% during the first quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,752,050 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $956,285,000 after purchasing an additional 347,852 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter worth approximately $58,255,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 1.5 %

NSC traded down $3.81 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $248.56. 763,051 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,250,222. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $247.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $236.66. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $183.09 and a 52-week high of $263.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.15 billion, a PE ratio of 40.15, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 86.96%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $371,077.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Richard H. Anderson purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $247.48 per share, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $742,440. The trade was a 200.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NSC. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.17.

Norfolk Southern 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.