First Pacific Financial Buys 71 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

First Pacific Financial lifted its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,259 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. First Pacific Financial’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 157.1% in the first 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 position in Norfolk Southern by 5.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,001,490,000 after purchasing 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 last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 10.2% in the first quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,752,050 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $956,285,000 after purchasing an additional 347,852 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth $58,255,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock traded up $0.49 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $254.33. 1,077,868 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,251,320. The firm has a market cap of $57.46 billion, a PE ratio of 41.07, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.63. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $183.09 and a 1 year high of $263.66. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $246.92 and its 200 day moving average is $236.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.95 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Benchmark increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen boosted their price target 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. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.17.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

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

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.