Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) Shares Will Pay Quarterly Dividend of $1.35

Key Points

• Norfolk Southern declared a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, payable November 20 to shareholders of record on November 6. The dividend annualizes to $5.40 per share and carries a 1.6% yield.
• The dividend appears well covered, with a current payout ratio of 37.8% and an expected future payout ratio of 38.9%; analysts forecast $13.87 in earnings per share next year.
• Norfolk Southern’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with EPS of $3.62 versus the $3.46 consensus and revenue of $3.53 billion, up 13.6% year over year.

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 6th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share by the railroad operator on Friday, November 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 6th.

Norfolk Southern has raised its dividend by an average of 0.1% annually over the last three years. Norfolk Southern has a payout ratio of 37.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Norfolk Southern to earn $13.87 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $5.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.9%.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC traded up $6.36 on Thursday, hitting $334.45. 214,550 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,173,693. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $326.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $320.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.12 billion, a PE ratio of 28.52, a P/E/G ratio of 4.85 and a beta of 1.29. Norfolk Southern has a 52 week low of $277.80 and a 52 week high of $358.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.46 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.48 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.21% and a net margin of 21.02%. Norfolk Southern's quarterly revenue was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.30 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern will post 12.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Corporation NYSE: NSC is a transportation company that operates one of the largest freight railroad networks in the eastern United States. Through its Norfolk Southern Railway subsidiary, the company provides rail transportation and related services across a broad territory spanning portions of the Midwest, South and East Coast, including access to major industrial centers, ports and distribution markets.

Norfolk Southern transports a diverse range of commodities, including intermodal freight, merchandise, automotive products, coal and other energy-related materials.

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