Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by ING Groep NV

Key Points

• ING Groep NV reduced its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation by 48.8% in the first quarter, selling 41,083 shares and leaving it with 43,113 shares worth approximately $10.2 million.
• Norfolk Southern announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.9%, set to be paid on August 20th.
• Analysts have updated their price targets for Norfolk Southern, with Citigroup and Bank of America raising their targets to $305 and noting an "average rating of 'Hold'" among the majority of research analysts.

ING Groep NV trimmed its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 48.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,113 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 41,083 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $10,211,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Greenline Partners LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 129.2% during the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 149 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on NSC shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Baird R W upgraded Norfolk Southern to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $285.15.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NSC stock traded down $3.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $279.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,187,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,196,134. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $262.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $245.68. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52-week low of $201.63 and a 52-week high of $288.11. The stock has a market cap of $62.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.91, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.24 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 27.51% and a return on equity of 19.35%. Research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.49%.

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.