IFM Investors Pty Ltd Boosts Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 19.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 67,561 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,890 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $16,789,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 157.1% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,890,665 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $735,749,000 after acquiring an additional 1,766,135 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $5,001,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,072 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 17.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,356,590 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $720,626,000 after purchasing an additional 496,088 shares in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,752,050 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $956,285,000 after purchasing an additional 347,852 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 23,037.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 349,143 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $86,762,000 after purchasing an additional 347,634 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Norfolk Southern news, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $371,077.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Benchmark lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $274.16.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE:NSC traded down $4.32 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $252.66. 525,330 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,256,359. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.63. The company has a market cap of $57.08 billion, a PE ratio of 41.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $248.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $236.88. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $183.09 and a 1 year high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

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.