Covington Investment Advisors Inc. Has $5.21 Million Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Covington Investment Advisors Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,961 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 469 shares during the period. Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $5,209,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This represents a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. The trade was a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $263.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $275.87 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.41 billion, a PE ratio of 25.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $206.71 and a 52 week high of $277.60. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $254.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $240.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.73.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 50.70%.

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.