Bank of America Corp DE Makes New $978.98 Million Investment in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 3.11 million Norfolk Southern shares worth approximately $979 million, giving it a 1.39% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 75.1% of the railroad operator.
• Analysts remain mostly cautious, with 15 Hold ratings and seven Buy ratings; the average price target is $348, compared with the stock’s reported price of $320.25.
• Norfolk Southern exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.52 in EPS and $3.46 billion in revenue, while maintaining a quarterly dividend of $1.35, equivalent to a 1.7% yield.

Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 3,111,914 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $978,977,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned 1.39% of Norfolk Southern at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Bayban acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on NSC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $316.00 to $338.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $310.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Evercore set a $358.00 price target on Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $363.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE:NSC opened at $320.25 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $71.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.76 and a beta of 1.27. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a one year low of $274.78 and a one year high of $358.60. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $335.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $316.03.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.38 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.21% and a net margin of 21.02%.Norfolk Southern's revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.29 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is 46.08%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major freight railroad company serving the eastern United States. Through its railway network, the company transports raw materials, intermediate goods and finished products for industrial, agricultural, manufacturing and consumer markets. Its operations connect customers with domestic markets, major ports and other rail carriers.

The company transports a diverse range of commodities, including intermodal containers, coal, automotive products, agriculture and consumer goods, chemicals, metals, forest products and construction materials.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NSC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.