PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab Boosts Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• PensionDanmark increased its Norfolk Southern stake by 29.2% in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 54,620 shares valued at approximately $17.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 75.1% of the company.
• Norfolk Southern exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.52 in EPS and $3.46 billion in revenue, with revenue rising 12.5% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and a $348 target price. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, equivalent to a 1.6% annual yield.

PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 29.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 54,620 shares of the railroad operator's stock after acquiring an additional 12,350 shares during the quarter. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $17,183,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 239.3% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 95 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Bayban purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $351.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $334.86 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.83. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a one year low of $268.23 and a one year high of $358.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.57, a PEG ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.27. The company's fifty day moving average is $322.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $309.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The business had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.29 EPS. The business's revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.08%.

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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