Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Sells 4,366 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund trimmed its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 39.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,573 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 4,366 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,557,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 304 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Shayne & Jacobs LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Shayne & Jacobs LLC now owns 3,327 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $781,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Malaga Cove Capital LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Malaga Cove Capital LLC now owns 2,451 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.2% in the first quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 4,241 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,004,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NSC opened at $253.17 on Monday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12-month low of $201.63 and a 12-month high of $277.60. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $236.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $238.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.07 billion, a PE ratio of 17.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.32.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its 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 27.40% and a return on equity of 19.65%. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.49 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 36.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on NSC. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $247.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $259.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $255.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $267.24.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.