Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Purchases 1,000 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC)

Key Points

• Cutler Investment Counsel LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation by 99.2% to 2,008 shares, valued at approximately $476,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
• Analyst ratings for Norfolk Southern show a mix, with TD Cowen upgrading the stock from "hold" to "buy" and increasing the price target to $323.00, while Citigroup downgraded it from "buy" to "neutral" with a new price target of $288.00.
• Norfolk Southern recently reported a quarterly EPS of $3.29, surpassing analyst expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35, yielding an annualized total of $5.40.

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 99.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,008 shares of the railroad operator's stock after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the quarter. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $476,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 25,555.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 989,796 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $234,433,000 after buying an additional 985,938 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,608,080 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $2,020,318,000 after buying an additional 918,559 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 293.7% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 671,680 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $157,643,000 after buying an additional 501,053 shares during the period. Phoenix Financial Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth about $110,209,000. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,073,933 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $721,452,000 after buying an additional 371,589 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and issued a $289.00 price target (up previously from $279.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $271.00 to $270.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Susquehanna reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $260.00 price target (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $285.15.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock traded down $0.82 on Thursday, reaching $278.18. 3,690,924 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,714,172. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a one year low of $201.63 and a one year high of $288.11. The company has a market capitalization of $62.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.80, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a 50-day moving average of $259.28 and a 200 day moving average of $244.45.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.89%.

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.