Equities Analysts Set Expectations for NSC Q4 Earnings

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research raised their Q4 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, November 20th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the railroad operator will post earnings of $3.37 per share for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $3.34. Zacks Research has a “Strong Sell” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Norfolk Southern’s current full-year earnings is $13.00 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Norfolk Southern’s Q1 2027 earnings at $3.38 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $3.77 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $14.24 EPS.

NSC has been the subject of several other research reports. Barclays boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $235.00 to $278.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $301.10.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $289.28 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $64.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.86. Norfolk Southern has a one year low of $201.63 and a one year high of $302.24. The company’s 50-day moving average is $288.02 and its 200 day moving average is $272.83.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.31 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 24.22%.The firm’s revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.25 EPS.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 75.0% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 84 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 207.1% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. MMA Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at $26,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Anil Bhatt sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.60, for a total transaction of $253,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,413 shares in the company, valued at $397,900.80. The trade was a 38.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $282.97 per share, with a total value of $466,900.50. Following the purchase, the director owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,395,640. This represents a 15.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.19%.

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.