Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 20,626 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 3.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 504,042 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 20,626 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.22% of Norfolk Southern worth $144,660,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at about $3,272,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 43,408 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $12,533,000 after purchasing an additional 3,887 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the third quarter worth about $184,752,000. Angelo Gordon & CO. L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,464,000. Finally, Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 126.6% during the 3rd quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 15,413 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,630,000 after purchasing an additional 8,612 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on NSC. Wolfe Research raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $322.00 to $313.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $296.00 to $292.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $323.72.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $323.43 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $312.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $302.83. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $72.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.25, a PEG ratio of 5.87 and a beta of 1.27. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a one year low of $257.49 and a one year high of $326.00.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.69 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.16 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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.