Assetmark Inc. Purchases 94 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 3.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,921 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $726,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.8% in the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 35,714 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $8,875,000 after buying an additional 640 shares during the period. United Bank raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.4% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 8,875 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,205,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter worth about $310,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.9% in the third quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 76,225 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $18,938,000 after buying an additional 701 shares during the period. Finally, Burt Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $227,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $261.27 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $252.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $238.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12 month low of $205.70 and a 12 month high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.65 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This represents a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,000. The trade was a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Loop Capital raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Profile

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.