Synovus Financial Corp Increases Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Key Points

• Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation by 7.3%, owning a total of 30,045 shares valued at approximately $7.12 million.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets for Norfolk Southern, with Bank of America increasing it from $290 to $305 and providing a "buy" rating.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.35, with a dividend yield of 1.9% and a payout ratio of 36.49%.

Synovus Financial Corp boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 7.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,045 shares of the railroad operator's stock after purchasing an additional 2,044 shares during the quarter. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $7,117,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,706 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Nebula Research & Development LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $309,000. Capital Analysts LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2,150.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 450 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,115 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,435,000 after purchasing an additional 559 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Baird R W upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Bank of America raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Benchmark lowered Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $285.15.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $283.9740 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $270.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $247.69. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $63.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12 month low of $201.63 and a 12 month high of $291.69.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. Norfolk Southern's 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.

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