First Command Advisory Services Inc. Sells 375 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

First Command Advisory Services Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 34.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 728 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 375 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $186,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised 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. Morningstar Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $597,000. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 52.5% in the 2nd quarter. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC now owns 4,441 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,137,000 after purchasing an additional 1,528 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 76,057 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $19,468,000 after purchasing an additional 3,367 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 19,598 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,012,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NSC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Saturday. Barclays lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $298.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $299.70.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $281.56 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $285.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $263.28. The company has a market cap of $63.18 billion, a PE ratio of 21.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a twelve month low of $201.63 and a twelve month high of $302.24.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.11 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 24.22%.Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.25 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 41.19%.

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.