K2 Principal Fund L.P. Acquires 9,900 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

K2 Principal Fund L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 1,100.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,800 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,900 shares during the quarter. K2 Principal Fund L.P.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $3,118,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 444,677 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $128,387,000 after purchasing an additional 47,560 shares during the period. Blue Jean Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth about $1,563,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth about $71,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,465,985 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $423,259,000 after purchasing an additional 213,420 shares during the period. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 13,833 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,994,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $314.05 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $308.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $300.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12 month low of $247.85 and a 12 month high of $326.00. The company has a market capitalization of $70.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.46, a P/E/G ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 1.27.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.69 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.12 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wolfe Research raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Argus upgraded Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $322.71.

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.