Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Sells 6,756 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS reduced its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 1.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 353,729 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 6,756 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $101,520,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,706 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $400,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 40.4% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 6,447 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,527,000 after purchasing an additional 1,855 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $327,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 64.1% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 4,275 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,094,000 after purchasing an additional 1,670 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 185.1% in the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 4,588 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,174,000 after acquiring an additional 2,979 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Norfolk Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Robert W. Baird raised its price target on Norfolk Southern from $330 to $360, signaling more upside potential even though the firm kept a neutral rating. Benzinga report
• Positive Sentiment: Stephens upgraded Norfolk Southern to hold, a modestly more favorable stance that can support sentiment around the stock. Tickerreport.com article
• Neutral Sentiment: A Globe and Mail roundup noted that analyst views on Norfolk Southern are mixed, reinforcing that investors are balancing optimism on valuation with caution on near-term fundamentals. The Globe and Mail article
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan lowered its price target from $331 to $316 and kept a neutral rating, suggesting limited upside from current levels and some pressure on sentiment. Benzinga report
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options activity showed a surge in put buying, which can indicate that some traders are positioning for downside or hedging against short-term weakness. Options trading report

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock traded up $3.83 during trading on Friday, reaching $327.60. The company had a trading volume of 636,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 981,612. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.58 billion, a PE ratio of 27.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 1.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $313.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $303.01. 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 Corporation has a 1-year low of $257.49 and a 1-year high of $328.58.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.69 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 45.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NSC. Weiss Ratings downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group set a $327.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $322.00 to $313.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $326.72.

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.