Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC is Skylands Capital LLC’s 10th Largest Position

Skylands Capital LLC lessened its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 4.5% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 55,290 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,590 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern makes up approximately 2.1% of Skylands Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Skylands Capital LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $15,868,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 2,515 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $726,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 791 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 3,090 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $892,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,216 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $929,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Sovereign Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $318,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on NSC. Zacks Research raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Weiss Ratings lowered Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group set a $327.00 price objective on Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, April 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $320.35.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:NSC opened at $312.88 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $310.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $301.10. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a one year low of $254.18 and a one year high of $326.00. The firm has a market cap of $70.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a P/E/G ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.69 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.49%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.