D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. decreased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 33.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 271,123 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 137,678 shares during the quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $63,633,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Atlantic Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.10.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE NSC opened at $223.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $201.63 and a 52 week high of $277.60. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $225.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $242.94. The firm has a market cap of $50.43 billion, a PE ratio of 19.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.72 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.89%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.