Sanford C. Bernstein Boosts Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target to $286.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price target raised by Sanford C. Bernstein from $285.00 to $286.00 in a research note published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Sanford C. Bernstein currently has an outperform rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Susquehanna upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $239.00 to $241.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $266.17.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $250.17 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $56.52 billion, a PE ratio of 40.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. Norfolk Southern has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $246.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $236.77.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 86.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $245.15 per share, for a total transaction of $171,605.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,887,655. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,001,490,000 after buying an additional 1,088,072 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,986,180 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,525,699,000 after acquiring an additional 124,362 shares during the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,789,436 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $813,554,000 after purchasing an additional 37,386 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $720,626,000 after purchasing an additional 496,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 157.1% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $735,749,000 after purchasing an additional 1,766,135 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

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.