OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Sells 900 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC cut its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,660 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 900 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern makes up approximately 1.0% of OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $12,125,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,694,573 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,098,472,000 after purchasing an additional 113,648 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $1,796,000. Grandview Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $918,000. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 5,678 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,333,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Finally, Clarendon Private LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $309,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on NSC. Citigroup reduced their price target on Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $259.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Bank of America cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.10.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 7.0%

Shares of NSC opened at $239.16 on Tuesday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $201.63 and a one year high of $277.60. The company has a market cap of $53.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $225.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $242.68.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.72 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.49 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.89%.

Norfolk Southern Profile

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.