Baxter Bros Inc. Trims Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Baxter Bros Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 27,736 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 176 shares during the quarter. Baxter Bros Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $6,556,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.4% during the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 44,553 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $8,774,000 after purchasing an additional 1,053 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth approximately $225,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 35.8% during the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 14,810 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,917,000 after acquiring an additional 3,905 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 59.0% in the third quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 5,974 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,176,000 after purchasing an additional 2,216 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 110,341 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $21,729,000 after purchasing an additional 759 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Susquehanna cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $262.32.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC traded up $1.75 during trading on Friday, reaching $235.55. 1,072,692 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,327,953. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market cap of $53.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.93, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $249.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $233.59.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.32 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

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.