Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Sells 1,860 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lowered its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC – Get Rating) by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 106,829 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 1,860 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $22,396,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Adirondack Trust Co. purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Newfound Research LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Insight Inv LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Wagner Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $46,000. Institutional investors own 72.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on NSC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $220.00 to $273.00 in a research report on Monday, November 28th. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Norfolk Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $280.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Friday, October 7th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Monday, December 5th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating and set a $245.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, November 17th. Finally, Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $247.00 to $243.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $247.43.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director James A. Squires sold 21,272 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.76, for a total value of $5,227,806.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $246,005.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 2,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.35, for a total value of $516,700.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 30,158 shares in the company, valued at $7,791,319.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director James A. Squires sold 21,272 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.76, for a total transaction of $5,227,806.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $246,005.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:NSC opened at $255.88 on Wednesday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $203.65 and a 52 week high of $291.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $250.62 and a 200 day moving average of $240.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.81, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.32.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 26th. The railroad operator reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.64 by $0.46. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 26.21% and a return on equity of 24.32%. The company had revenue of $3.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.22 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is a boost from Norfolk Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.47%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

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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, scrap paper, beverages, canned goods, and consumer products; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, and sand; 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.