GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. Purchases New Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. acquired a new position of 33,900 shares in Norfolk Southern valued at approximately $10.18 million, about 1.6% of its portfolio and its 18th largest holding.
• Other large institutional moves include Norges Bank opening a new position worth roughly $613.3 million, contributing to institutional ownership of about 75.1%.
• Norfolk Southern beat quarterly EPS expectations ($3.22 vs. consensus $2.76), pays a quarterly dividend of $1.35 (annualized $5.40, yield ~1.7%), and has a market cap near $70 billion.

GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 33,900 shares of the railroad operator's stock, valued at approximately $10,184,000. Norfolk Southern comprises about 1.6% of GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC.'s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $613,255,000. Holocene Advisors LP raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 550.6% during the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 983,366 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $251,712,000 after buying an additional 832,210 shares during the period. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth about $181,995,000. Alpine Associates Management Inc. bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $150,989,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 93.1% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 952,544 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $286,154,000 after acquiring an additional 459,166 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $311.57 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a twelve month low of $201.63 and a twelve month high of $319.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.44, a P/E/G ratio of 5.74 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a 50 day moving average of $299.85 and a 200-day moving average of $291.39.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.03 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 23.59% and a return on equity of 18.78%. The firm's revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.04 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is currently 42.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded Norfolk Southern from an "equal weight" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Evercore raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $299.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $317.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $304.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $304.47.

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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