Lafayette Investments Inc. Sells 374 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Lafayette Investments Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 33,920 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 374 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern comprises 1.7% of Lafayette Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $7,961,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,089,164 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,714,927,000 after buying an additional 139,485 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,694,573 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,098,472,000 after purchasing an additional 113,648 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,020,392 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $945,385,000 after purchasing an additional 580,293 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,073,933 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $721,452,000 after purchasing an additional 371,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $547,575,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $259.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $268.79.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NSC opened at $221.06 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $201.63 and a 12-month high of $277.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $236.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $246.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. Equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 46.71%.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.