Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc Purchases 58 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc boosted its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,704 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $920,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,265 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $563,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. now owns 1,516 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $325,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 7,716 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,656,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 12.4% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 381 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.2% during the third quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.7 %

NSC stock opened at $264.76 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $59.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.86, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $204.90 and a twelve month high of $277.60. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $252.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $238.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 50.70%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NSC. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $263.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $275.68.

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.