Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Shares Sold by Sanctuary Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Sanctuary Advisors LLC trimmed its Norfolk Southern stake by 9.7% in the first quarter, selling 4,102 shares and leaving it with 38,193 shares worth about $10.96 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with hedge funds and other investors owning 75.10% of Norfolk Southern’s stock; several firms recently added or increased positions.
• Analysts are mixed on the railroad operator: the consensus rating is Hold with a target price of $329.35, while Norfolk Southern recently beat EPS estimates in its latest quarterly report and continues paying a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share.

Sanctuary Advisors LLC reduced its position in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 9.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,193 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 4,102 shares during the quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $10,961,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 933.3% during the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 93 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position 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 valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 669.2% during the third quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 100 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on NSC. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $313.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $337.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Stephens raised shares of Norfolk Southern to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $329.35.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC stock opened at $337.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.47, a PEG ratio of 6.00 and a beta of 1.27. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1 year low of $264.01 and a 1 year high of $339.77. The stock's fifty day moving average is $314.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $304.16.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.69 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.24 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is presently 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.

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