Fire Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Fire Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,500 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $352,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,694,573 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,098,472,000 after acquiring an additional 113,648 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth $1,796,000. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 5,678 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,333,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,703,000. Finally, Hoge Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $238,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on NSC shares. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $247.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $255.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $266.70.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock traded up $0.81 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $247.11. 2,785,760 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,223,783. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $228.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $241.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $201.63 and a 1 year high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.72 by ($0.03). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.49 EPS. Norfolk Southern's quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is 36.89%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.