Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 5,036 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation by 21% during the 1st quarter, now holding 18,981 shares valued at approximately $4.5 million.
• Norfolk Southern reported earnings of $3.29 per share for the quarter, surpassing analyst estimates and generating $3.11 billion in revenue.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, with an annualized rate of $5.40 and a yield of 1.9%.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 21.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,981 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 5,036 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $4,496,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Greenline Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 129.2% in the first quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 149 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $279.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Susquehanna restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $260.00 target price (up from $250.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $288.00 target price (up from $282.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $285.15.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC traded up $2.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $279.88. The company had a trading volume of 1,543,066 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,129,127. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1 year low of $201.63 and a 1 year high of $291.69. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $272.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $248.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $62.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.29.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.24 by $0.05. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.35% and a net margin of 27.51%.The business had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.49%.

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.