Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 25.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,969 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $462,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 3.6% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 255,200 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $63,417,000 after purchasing an additional 8,844 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 20.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,428 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,556,000 after buying an additional 2,453 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 533,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $132,565,000 after acquiring an additional 3,621 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $222,025,000 after acquiring an additional 889,925 shares during the period. Finally, Grandview Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $918,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on NSC. 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 note on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $263.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $245.39 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $251.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $246.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $206.71 and a 1 year high of $277.60. The company has a market capitalization of $55.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.65 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current year.

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.