Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) PT Raised to $309.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective increased by UBS Group from $289.00 to $309.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. UBS Group’s target price points to a potential upside of 20.37% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on NSC. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $294.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $269.83.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE NSC traded down $3.72 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $256.71. The company had a trading volume of 290,004 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,253,690. The company has a market capitalization of $57.99 billion, a PE ratio of 41.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.54. Norfolk Southern has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $248.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $236.73.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.15. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Norfolk Southern will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 700 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,887,655. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Richard H. Anderson acquired 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, for a total transaction of $494,960.00. Following the transaction, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were bought at an average price of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,887,655. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 157.1% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $735,749,000 after purchasing an additional 1,766,135 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,001,490,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088,072 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $720,626,000 after purchasing an additional 496,088 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 10.2% during the 1st 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 period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 23,037.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 349,143 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $86,762,000 after purchasing an additional 347,634 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.