Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-one analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $267.24.

NSC has been the topic of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $278.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $260.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $271.00 to $270.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $250.89 on Friday. Norfolk Southern has a 12 month low of $201.63 and a 12 month high of $277.60. The stock has a market cap of $56.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.70, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.32. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $229.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $240.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.72 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. Norfolk Southern's revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.49 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.89%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,321,359 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $4,813,114,000 after acquiring an additional 232,195 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 31.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 11,319,010 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $2,680,910,000 after buying an additional 2,710,930 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 113,648 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.4% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,159,070 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $983,161,000 after buying an additional 138,678 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the first quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,998,335 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $947,006,000 after buying an additional 29,753 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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