Inkwell Capital LLC Invests $2.85 Million in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Inkwell Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 12,147 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $2,851,000. Norfolk Southern makes up about 3.0% of Inkwell Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,089,164 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,714,927,000 after purchasing an additional 139,485 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,318,716,000 after buying an additional 196,249 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,580,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,133,828,000 after acquiring an additional 62,186 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,020,392 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $945,385,000 after acquiring an additional 580,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.7% during the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,892,717 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $967,340,000 after acquiring an additional 103,281 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Stephens increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America cut their target price on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $293.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $274.84.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $230.41 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $245.28 and its 200 day moving average is $249.08. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $52.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.93, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

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

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.