Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Norfolk Southern Corporation has received a consensus rating of "Hold" from 22 brokerages, with 14 recommending a hold and 8 a buy, reflecting mixed investor sentiment.
• Analysts have adjusted price targets for NSC shares, with Barclays setting a new target of $320, indicating strong performance expectations for the company.
• The company recently reported earnings of $3.29 per share, surpassing expectations, alongside a quarterly dividend announcement of $1.35 per share with a yield of 1.9%.

Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the twenty-two brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $293.25.

Several research analysts have recently commented on NSC shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $235.00 to $278.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $298.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 25th.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of NSC stock opened at $288.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market cap of $64.77 billion, a PE ratio of 19.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a 50-day moving average of $284.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $257.90. Norfolk Southern has a 1-year low of $201.63 and a 1-year high of $302.24.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.49%.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 23.0% in the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 545 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 70.5% in the third quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,719 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $516,000 after acquiring an additional 711 shares in the last quarter. FC Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 7.6% in the third quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 2,312 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $695,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company's stock.

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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