Commerce Bank Makes New $13.20 Million Investment in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• Commerce Bank acquired 41,955 shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter, representing an investment of approximately $13.2 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 75.1% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $348, although Barclays raised its target to $400 and assigned an “overweight” rating.
• Norfolk Southern exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.52 in EPS and $3.46 billion in revenue, while revenue increased 12.5% year over year. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, yielding approximately 1.5% annually.

Commerce Bank acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 41,955 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $13,199,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in NSC. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. BNP Paribas acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Evercore set a $358.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $363.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Stephens raised Norfolk Southern to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $350.77 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $328.23 and a 200-day moving average of $313.31. The firm has a market cap of $78.79 billion, a PE ratio of 29.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.21 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.83. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a twelve month low of $268.23 and a twelve month high of $358.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.29 EPS. The company's revenue was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is 46.08%.

Norfolk Southern 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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