Apella Capital LLC Buys New Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Apella Capital LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 1,731 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $524,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at $24,033,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 43,408 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $12,533,000 after buying an additional 3,887 shares during the period. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 11.7% during the third quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 15,143 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,549,000 after buying an additional 1,587 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,133,629 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $340,554,000 after buying an additional 79,049 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farallon Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $184,752,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NSC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wolfe Research increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $360.00 to $320.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $320.35.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $312.88 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12-month low of $254.18 and a 12-month high of $326.00. The company has a market cap of $70.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a P/E/G ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $310.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $301.10.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.13 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.69 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.49%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.