Threadgill Financial LLC Has $1.40 Million Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Threadgill Financial LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 93.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,438 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 3,107 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern accounts for approximately 1.6% of Threadgill Financial LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Threadgill Financial LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter worth $6,214,000. Cedar Brook Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth $220,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,168 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 119,260 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $25,283,000 after purchasing an additional 4,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 11.6% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 40,430 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $8,571,000 after purchasing an additional 4,211 shares during the last quarter. 72.37% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on NSC. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 28th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $226.00 to $253.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $260.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 11th. StockNews.com began coverage on Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Vertical Research upgraded Norfolk Southern from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 11th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $245.40.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC traded down $4.42 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $199.71. 259,397 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,418,622. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $218.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $214.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.36, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $194.05 and a fifty-two week high of $261.71.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The railroad operator reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.15 by ($0.20). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 24.88% and a net margin of 20.25%. The business had revenue of $2.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.45 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was down 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 12.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 4th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 3rd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.56%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.