American Century Companies Inc. Has $740.89 Million Holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation by 6.4%, owning over 3.1 million shares worth approximately $740.9 million.
• Norfolk Southern recently reported $3.29 earnings per share, surpassing analyst expectations, with revenue totaling $3.11 billion for the quarter.
• A quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share was declared, representing an annual yield of 1.9%, with a payout ratio of 36.49%.

American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 6.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,128,102 shares of the railroad operator's stock after acquiring an additional 189,076 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern accounts for about 0.5% of American Century Companies Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 1.39% of Norfolk Southern worth $740,891,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Greenline Partners LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 129.2% in the first quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 149 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NSC. Benchmark lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $255.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $285.15.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NSC stock traded up $5.5070 on Tuesday, hitting $285.2970. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,113,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,561,540. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $201.63 and a fifty-two week high of $288.11. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $267.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $246.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.24 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 27.51% and a return on equity of 19.35%. Norfolk Southern has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is currently 36.49%.

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.