Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Stock Position Decreased by Jones Financial Companies Lllp

Key Points

• Jones Financial Companies Lllp significantly reduced its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation by 48.6%, holding 8,735 shares after selling 8,251 during Q1, worth approximately $1.97 million.
• Major institutional investors increased their positions in Norfolk Southern, with Price T Rowe Associates acquiring 31.5% more shares, while GAMMA Investing LLC increased theirs by an astonishing 25,555.7%.
• Wall Street analysts have a mixed sentiment on Norfolk Southern, with seven rating it as a Buy and fourteen as Hold, with an average target price of $285.15.

Jones Financial Companies Lllp trimmed its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 48.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,735 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 8,251 shares during the quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida now owns 956 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,556 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $605,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Certified Advisory Corp grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Certified Advisory Corp now owns 4,644 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,100,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 4,241 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,004,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 11.2% in the 1st quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 495 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $117,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on NSC shares. Evercore ISI reissued an "in-line" rating and issued a $289.00 price objective (up from $279.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Benchmark lowered Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered Norfolk Southern from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $285.15.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC traded up $0.90 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $274.90. The stock had a trading volume of 2,243,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,923,360. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52 week low of $201.63 and a 52 week high of $291.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $276.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $250.35. The company has a market capitalization of $61.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.29.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.24 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 27.51%. Norfolk Southern has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.49%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

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.