Oak Asset Management LLC Sells 260 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Oak Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,742 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 260 shares during the quarter. Norfolk Southern accounts for 1.0% of Oak Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Oak Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,781,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,089,164 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,714,927,000 after buying an additional 139,485 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,608,080 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,020,318,000 after buying an additional 918,559 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings 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 buying an additional 113,648 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its position 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 buying an additional 580,293 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,968,582 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $931,426,000 after acquiring an additional 75,865 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC stock opened at $247.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $228.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $240.90. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $201.63 and a one year high of $277.60. The company has a market capitalization of $55.83 billion, a PE ratio of 21.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.49 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $247.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $269.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $259.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $267.24.

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.