Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Buys 2,310 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 39.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,225 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $613,255,000. Holocene Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 550.6% during the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 983,366 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $251,712,000 after purchasing an additional 832,210 shares during the period. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at $181,995,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 93.1% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 952,544 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $286,154,000 after buying an additional 459,166 shares during the period. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 25,497.0% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 428,750 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $109,747,000 after buying an additional 427,075 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $315.13 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12-month low of $201.63 and a 12-month high of $319.94. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $293.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $288.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.72, a P/E/G ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.46. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.78% and a net margin of 23.59%.The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 6th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 42.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director William Jr. Clyburn acquired 204 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $294.79 per share, with a total value of $60,137.16. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $119,389.95. This represents a 101.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Anil Bhatt sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.60, for a total transaction of $253,440.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 1,413 shares in the company, valued at $397,900.80. This trade represents a 38.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $317.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $354.00 to $297.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $304.47.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.