Old West Investment Management LLC Makes New Investment in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Old West Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 14,315 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $4,503,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $1,084,701,000. Pentwater Capital Management LP bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at about $826,128,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at about $364,414,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 545.2% during the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,306,203 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $392,396,000 after purchasing an additional 1,103,748 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $329,629,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $334.69 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $75.17 billion, a PE ratio of 28.56, a P/E/G ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a twelve month low of $268.23 and a twelve month high of $358.60. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $324.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $311.52.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The business had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.29 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $337.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Evercore set a $358.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern 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.