Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Acquires 3,929 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 20.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,175 shares of the railroad operator's stock after purchasing an additional 3,929 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $5,343,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,089,164 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $4,714,927,000 after acquiring an additional 139,485 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 11.9% during the fourth 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 acquiring an additional 918,559 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,694,573 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,098,472,000 after acquiring an additional 113,648 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,020,392 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $945,385,000 after acquiring an additional 580,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,968,582 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $931,426,000 after acquiring an additional 75,865 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC traded up $0.50 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $262.50. The stock had a trading volume of 928,463 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,238,299. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $244.07 and a 200-day moving average of $239.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $59.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12-month low of $201.63 and a 12-month high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.72 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.01 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.65% and a net margin of 27.40%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.49 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is 36.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Susquehanna reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $260.00 target price (up previously from $250.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $267.48.

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.