Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Given New $275.00 Price Target at Stephens

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its target price raised by equities research analysts at Stephens from $260.00 to $275.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Stephens’ price target indicates a potential upside of 6.16% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Benchmark boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.94.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC stock traded up $2.31 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $259.05. 109,035 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,215,178. Norfolk Southern has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.61 billion, a PE ratio of 24.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.34. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $249.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $248.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 3,349 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 86,396 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $20,325,000 after buying an additional 1,222 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,068 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $251,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 51,647 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $12,122,000 after acquiring an additional 1,148 shares during the period. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $2,309,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.