Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Cut to "Hold" at Evercore ISI

Key Points

• Norfolk Southern has been downgraded from a "strong-buy" to a "hold" rating by Evercore ISI, reflecting a shift in market sentiment.
• Despite the downgrade, Citigroup and Bank of America have raised their price targets for the stock to $305, suggesting ongoing interest from analysts.
• The company reported $3.29 earnings per share in its latest quarter, exceeding expectations and demonstrating solid financial performance.

Evercore ISI cut shares of Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $295.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, July 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target 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. Benchmark lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $285.15.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE NSC traded down $3.43 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $274.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,727,424 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,852,299. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $259.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $244.70. The stock has a market cap of $61.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern has a 52 week low of $201.63 and a 52 week high of $288.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last released 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. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 27.51% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is 36.49%.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Greenline Partners LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

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.