Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Shares Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 8.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 270,326 shares of the railroad operator's stock after buying an additional 20,140 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.12% of Norfolk Southern worth $78,049,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in NSC. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,431 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $3,878,000 after acquiring an additional 1,555 shares in the last quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $285,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 57.8% in the fourth quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 12,700 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $3,667,000 after purchasing an additional 4,650 shares in the last quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 47,630 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $13,752,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 225,411 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $65,081,000 after buying an additional 6,629 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $313.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Norfolk Southern from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group set a $327.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $319.83.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.1%

NYSE:NSC opened at $313.66 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $299.60 and a 200-day moving average of $294.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.45 billion, a PE ratio of 26.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52 week low of $220.02 and a 52 week high of $323.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.69 EPS. Analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.11 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio is currently 45.49%.

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.

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.