Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Pathway Financial Advisers LLC

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC reduced its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 99.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,693 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 889,766 shares during the quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $867,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.8% during the third quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,265 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC lifted its position in 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 worth $435,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.8% in the third quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 1,154 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Archer Investment Corp raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.3% in the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 1,934 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.11.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere bought 607 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $646,271.82. This trade represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.0 %

NYSE NSC opened at $253.80 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $245.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $250.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $57.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $206.71 and a one year high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS 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 anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.71%.

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.