Bank of Nova Scotia Buys 147,963 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its Norfolk Southern stake by 644.6% in Q3, buying 147,963 shares to hold 170,917 shares worth about $51.35 million (~0.08% of the company).
• Norfolk Southern beat EPS estimates with $3.22 per share for the quarter but saw revenue decline 1.7% year-over-year to $3.0 billion, slightly missing analyst forecasts.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $1.35 (annualized $5.40, yield 1.9%), and the consensus analyst rating is Hold with an average price target of $308.95.

Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 644.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 170,917 shares of the railroad operator's stock after buying an additional 147,963 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned about 0.08% of Norfolk Southern worth $51,345,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Park Place Capital Corp grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13,000.0% during the third quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 3,668 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,102,000 after buying an additional 3,640 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 31.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cullen Capital Management LLC now owns 121,351 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $36,455,000 after acquiring an additional 29,264 shares during the last quarter. Markel Group Inc. raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 256,500 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $77,055,000 after acquiring an additional 20,000 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,165,000. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $24,033,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $289.25 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $300.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $292.24. The firm has a market cap of $64.96 billion, a PE ratio of 22.69, a P/E/G ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1-year low of $201.63 and a 1-year high of $319.94.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.78% and a net margin of 23.59%.Norfolk Southern's revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.04 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is currently 42.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on NSC shares. Evercore increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $299.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Norfolk Southern from an "equal weight" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Zacks Research raised Norfolk Southern from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $317.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $361.00 to $368.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $308.95.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

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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