Virtu Financial LLC Sells 9,248 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Virtu Financial LLC trimmed its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 77.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,749 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 9,248 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $645,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. United Bank raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.4% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 8,875 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,205,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 33,359 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $8,290,000 after purchasing an additional 1,783 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $440,000. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.8% in the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,718 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,166,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,985 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $493,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the topic of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Loop Capital cut Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.63.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.9 %

NSC opened at $236.11 on Tuesday. 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $246.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $249.63. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60. The stock has a market cap of $53.46 billion, a PE ratio of 20.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (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%. As a group, 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.71%.

Norfolk Southern 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.