Dillon & Associates Inc. Purchases 406 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Dillon & Associates Inc. boosted its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 46,006 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 406 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern accounts for 1.6% of Dillon & Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Dillon & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $11,409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.0% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,721 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,968,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 4,104 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,046,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 41.8% during the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 26,913 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,859,000 after buying an additional 7,938 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.8% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 258,803 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $65,961,000 after purchasing an additional 23,035 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 19.3% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 270,826 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $69,025,000 after purchasing an additional 43,871 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC opened at $267.45 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $252.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $238.05. The firm has a market cap of $60.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.11, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $195.76 and a twelve month high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NSC. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $274.89.

Norfolk Southern 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.