Soltis Investment Advisors LLC Grows Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Soltis Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,160 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 87 shares during the quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $507,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Atomi Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $214,000. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 8,622 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,142,000 after acquiring an additional 1,254 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 291.2% during the 3rd quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 2,218 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $551,000 after acquiring an additional 1,651 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 6,726 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,671,000 after acquiring an additional 685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $144,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $253.63 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $206.71 and a 52 week high of $277.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $246.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $250.03.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. Research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.