Sivia Capital Partners LLC Acquires New Shares in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased 1,278 shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation for approximately $327,000 in the second quarter of 2023.
• The current consensus rating for Norfolk Southern among analysts is "Hold," with a consensus price target of $286.25.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, representing an annualized yield of 1.9%.

Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,278 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $327,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of NSC. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 883.3% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 177 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,571 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $846,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 71,463 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $16,925,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,179 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $990,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 115,417 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $27,337,000 after buying an additional 3,163 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC stock traded up $1.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $283.94. 2,712,265 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,921,810. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a twelve month low of $201.63 and a twelve month high of $291.69. The firm has a market cap of $63.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.29. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $277.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $251.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.24 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 27.51%. Norfolk Southern has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is currently 36.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on NSC. UBS Group increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Baird R W raised Norfolk Southern to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and set a $289.00 target price (up previously from $279.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Benchmark downgraded Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $286.25.

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.