WMG Financial Advisors LLC Acquires 73 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

WMG Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 997 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. WMG Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $234,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at $32,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stephens increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NSC stock opened at $244.90 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $206.71 and a 52-week high of $277.60. The company has a market capitalization of $55.45 billion, a PE ratio of 21.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. The business’s fifty day moving average is $246.25 and its 200 day moving average is $250.94.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % 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.

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.