Prospera Private Wealth LLC Invests $78,000 in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 313 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $78,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NSC. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 20.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,428 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $3,556,000 after purchasing an additional 2,453 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 533,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $132,565,000 after buying an additional 3,621 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $222,025,000 after buying an additional 889,925 shares in the last quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $1,676,000. Finally, Dakota Wealth Management boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 7,206 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,791,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was bought at an average price of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,000. This represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, 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. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC opened at $264.29 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $59.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.82, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $253.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $239.58. 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 Co. has a 52-week low of $206.71 and a 52-week high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 posted $2.65 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on NSC shares. Benchmark raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $263.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating 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 given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.68.

About Norfolk Southern

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.