US Bancorp DE Cuts Stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

US Bancorp DE reduced its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 177,054 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,833 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE owned approximately 0.08% of Norfolk Southern worth $51,119,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida now owns 1,335 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $385,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 5,487 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,584,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 252.1% during the 4th quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 3,493 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,008,000 after buying an additional 2,501 shares during the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Cadence Bank raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Cadence Bank now owns 11,316 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,267,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $315.59 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a 50-day moving average of $299.64 and a 200 day moving average of $294.35. The firm has a market cap of $70.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.59, a PEG ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1 year low of $218.05 and a 1 year high of $323.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 18.30%. Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.69 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $296.00 to $292.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $320.67.

Norfolk Southern 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.