Zions Bancorporation National Association UT Purchases Shares of 317 Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC)

Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 317 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $75,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 883.3% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 177 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,571 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $846,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 71,463 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $16,925,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,179 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $990,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the period. Finally, Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 472.3% in the 4th quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 43,054 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $10,105,000 after purchasing an additional 35,531 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:NSC opened at $278.29 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $62.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $264.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $245.92. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1 year low of $201.63 and a 1 year high of $288.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.24 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 27.51%. As a group, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and issued a $289.00 price objective (up from $279.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. 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. Barclays upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $278.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $285.15.

About Norfolk Southern

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.