Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) Shares Bought by Diversified Trust Co

Diversified Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 74.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,840 shares of the railroad operator's stock after acquiring an additional 2,489 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,383,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $547,575,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 25,555.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 989,796 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $234,433,000 after purchasing an additional 985,938 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,608,080 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $2,020,318,000 after acquiring an additional 918,559 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,020,392 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $945,385,000 after acquiring an additional 580,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 293.7% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 671,680 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $157,643,000 after purchasing an additional 501,053 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup cut their target price on Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $259.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $255.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Susquehanna reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $260.00 price target (up from $250.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $267.48.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC traded down $0.43 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $261.96. 1,218,401 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,231,654. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52-week low of $201.63 and a 52-week high of $277.60. The company has a market cap of $59.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.89, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $241.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $239.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.72 by ($0.03). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.65% and a net margin of 27.40%. The company had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.49 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.89%.

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.