Sanctuary Advisors LLC Takes Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 37,161 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $11,691,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth $3,272,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 43,408 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $12,533,000 after purchasing an additional 3,887 shares during the period. SCS Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at about $13,837,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at about $3,669,000. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth about $1,376,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NSC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $337.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $351.00 to $376.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Norfolk Southern from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $350.77 on Monday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52 week low of $268.23 and a 52 week high of $358.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $78.79 billion, a PE ratio of 29.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.21 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $328.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $313.47.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.29 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.08%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.