Midwest Professional Planners LTD. Buys 1,183 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Midwest Professional Planners LTD. increased its position in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 13.0% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 10,266 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 1,183 shares during the quarter. Midwest Professional Planners LTD.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 31.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 11,319,010 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,680,910,000 after purchasing an additional 2,710,930 shares during the period. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth $321,393,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 341.9% in the 1st quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 789,950 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $187,100,000 after buying an additional 611,198 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at about $122,256,000. Finally, Phoenix Financial Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at about $110,209,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE NSC opened at $284.04 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $286.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $269.81. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a one year low of $201.63 and a one year high of $302.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $63.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by ($0.01). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.25 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.19%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Richard H. Anderson acquired 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $281.86 per share, for a total transaction of $732,836.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,973,020. This trade represents a 59.09% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,650 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $282.97 per share, with a total value of $466,900.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,395,640. The trade was a 15.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on NSC shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Susquehanna upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $347.00 to $333.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $321.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $298.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $301.10.

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.