Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Sells 468 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 11,230 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 468 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,875,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 883.3% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 177 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.9% in the first quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,571 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $846,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.1% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 71,463 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $16,925,000 after acquiring an additional 2,782 shares in the last quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at about $321,393,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 8.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,179 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $990,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 2.4%

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $290.60 on Tuesday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52-week low of $201.63 and a 52-week high of $294.78. The stock has a market cap of $65.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s 50 day moving average is $278.46 and its 200 day moving average is $252.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 27.51%.The company had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $288.00 price objective (up from $282.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Benchmark downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $286.25.

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.