Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Lowers Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 46.1% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 286,818 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 244,937 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $67,933,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 304 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 3,097 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $727,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,816 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,365,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Shayne & Jacobs LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Shayne & Jacobs LLC now owns 3,327 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $781,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Malaga Cove Capital LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Malaga Cove Capital LLC now owns 2,451 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $575,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $251.39 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market cap of $56.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $231.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $240.48. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $201.63 and a 1 year high of $277.60.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 36.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on NSC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $293.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $271.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $278.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, June 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $267.24.

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.