Cartenna Capital LP Buys New Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Cartenna Capital LP bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 93,474 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $21,938,000. Norfolk Southern accounts for approximately 1.1% of Cartenna Capital LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 255,200 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $63,417,000 after purchasing an additional 8,844 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,694,573 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,098,472,000 after purchasing an additional 113,648 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,796,000. Grandview Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $918,000. Finally, Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 5,678 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,333,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Barclays dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $247.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Stephens increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $259.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $266.10.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now 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 purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock traded up $0.82 on Tuesday, reaching $222.55. 431,042 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,308,205. The stock has a market cap of $54.87 billion, a PE ratio of 19.25, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $201.63 and a twelve month high of $277.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $229.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $244.73.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.72 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.49 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.89%.

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.