Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Acquired by Zimmer Partners LP

Zimmer Partners LP grew its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 30.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 65,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,000 shares during the quarter. Zimmer Partners LP’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $15,256,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NSC. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,149 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 2,242 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 21.6% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 8,982 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,108,000 after acquiring an additional 1,593 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,842 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,507 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $588,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, Zhang Financial LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 1,126 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on NSC. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $247.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $293.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $255.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $266.50.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $243.76 on Tuesday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $201.63 and a 52 week high of $277.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market cap of $54.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $226.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $242.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.72 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. The company’s revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.49 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.89%.

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.