Pathway Financial Advisers LLC Buys 889,925 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 25,181.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 889,925 shares during the quarter. Norfolk Southern makes up 1.4% of Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC owned 0.40% of Norfolk Southern worth $222,025,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of NSC. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.5% in the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 70,068 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $17,412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,018 shares during the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 45,100 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $11,207,000 after purchasing an additional 5,100 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in 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 buying an additional 2,453 shares during the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,894 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,713,000 after buying an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 9,696 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,410,000 after buying an additional 1,287 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NSC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Benchmark lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.16.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE NSC traded down $2.33 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $251.09. The company had a trading volume of 1,027,380 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,259,482. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.58, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52 week low of $183.76 and a 52 week high of $263.66. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $249.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $236.99.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nabanita C. Nag sold 355 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.38, for a total value of $88,529.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $371,077.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders acquired 3,700 shares of company stock valued at $921,565. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.