Flputnam Investment Management Co. Makes New $3.76 Million Investment in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• Flputnam Investment Management acquired 11,958 Norfolk Southern shares worth approximately $3.76 million, while institutional investors collectively own 75.1% of the railroad operator.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Norfolk Southern has a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $348, despite Barclays raising its target to $400 and Weiss Ratings upgrading the stock to “Buy.”
• Norfolk Southern beat quarterly expectations with $3.52 in EPS and $3.46 billion in revenue, up 12.5% year over year. The company also declared a $1.35 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 1.6% yield.

Flputnam Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 11,958 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $3,762,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 239.3% during the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 95 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Bayban purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on NSC. Weiss Ratings upgraded Norfolk Southern from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $351.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays lifted their price objective 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. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $334.69 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $75.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.56, a PEG ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 1.27. The firm's 50-day moving average is $324.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $311.52. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1 year low of $268.23 and a 1 year 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. Norfolk Southern's revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.29 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is presently 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.

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.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source