Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Norfolk Southern Corporation has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from 21 analysts, with 10 holding a 'hold' rating and 11 issuing buy ratings.
• The average 1-year price target for Norfolk Southern stock is $282.50, with recent upgrades from various analysts pushing price targets as high as $323.00.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.91%, set to be paid on August 20th.

Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-one ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $282.50.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. 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 report on Wednesday, April 2nd. TD Cowen upgraded Norfolk Southern from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $263.00 to $323.00 in a report on Monday, July 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of NSC. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Greenline Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $282.73 on Monday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $256.17 and its 200 day moving average is $243.31. Norfolk Southern has a one year low of $201.63 and a one year high of $288.11. The firm has a market cap of $63.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.89%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.