Advisor OS LLC Buys 6,138 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• Advisor OS LLC increased its Norfolk Southern stake by 363.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 6,138 additional shares and bringing its total to 7,825 shares worth about $2.26 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains cautious: the stock has a Hold consensus rating, with 6 Buy and 17 Hold ratings, and a consensus price target of $319.83.
• Norfolk Southern beat earnings expectations last quarter, reporting $2.65 EPS versus $2.49 expected, and it recently announced a $1.35 quarterly dividend payable May 20, for an annualized yield of 1.7%.

Advisor OS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 363.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,825 shares of the railroad operator's stock after acquiring an additional 6,138 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,259,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 75.0% in the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 84 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 207.1% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 933.3% in the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 93 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MMA Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Zacks Research raised Norfolk Southern from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Evercore set a $325.00 price objective on Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $319.83.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC stock opened at $312.47 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $299.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $294.95. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1-year low of $222.00 and a 1-year high of $323.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $70.18 billion, a PE ratio of 26.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.76 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.69 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.49%.

About Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.

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