Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Shares Sold by Citizens & Northern Corp

Citizens & Northern Corp cut its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 28.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,836 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,714 shares during the period. Citizens & Northern Corp’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,974,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Pentwater Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at $826,128,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 545.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,306,203 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $392,396,000 after acquiring an additional 1,103,748 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at $329,629,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at $181,995,000. Finally, M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 463.2% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 783,271 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $226,146,000 after acquiring an additional 644,202 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 7.9%

NSC stock opened at $321.81 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $217.33 and a fifty-two week high of $322.20. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $299.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $293.60. The stock has a market cap of $78.79 billion, a PE ratio of 25.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.46. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 23.59% and a return on equity of 18.78%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.04 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.14 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on NSC. UBS Group cut shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $342.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $310.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $317.00 to $308.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $310.17.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.