American Money Management LLC Sells 47 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

American Money Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,755 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 47 shares during the period. American Money Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $881,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 1,749 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $435,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 6,881 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,615,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 960 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,507 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $588,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, Leavell Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,816 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,365,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on NSC. Loop Capital cut Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $274.84.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $230.41 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $206.71 and a 12-month high of $277.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $245.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $249.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. On average, analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.71%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.