Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target Cut to $313.00 by Analysts at TD Cowen

Key Points

• TD Cowen trimmed its price target to $313 (from $314) but maintained a "buy" rating, implying roughly a 9.1% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst views are mixed: the consensus average rating is "Hold" with an average price target of $305.53, while firms like Deutsche Bank and Barclays have cut ratings/targets and Weiss upgraded to "Buy".
• Shares trade near $286.90; Norfolk Southern posted an EPS beat of $3.22 vs. $2.76 despite revenue down 1.7%, and about 75% of the stock is held by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) had its price objective reduced by analysts at TD Cowen from $314.00 to $313.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the railroad operator's stock. TD Cowen's target price would indicate a potential upside of 9.10% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on NSC. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Norfolk Southern to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday. Evercore increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $299.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Norfolk Southern from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Barclays dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $340.00 to $320.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $354.00 to $297.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $305.53.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock opened at $286.90 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market cap of $70.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.64, a PEG ratio of 5.25 and a beta of 1.31. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $299.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $293.15. Norfolk Southern has a 52-week low of $201.63 and a 52-week high of $319.94.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.46. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 23.59% and a return on equity of 18.78%. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.04 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern's revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Norfolk Southern will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,825,837 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $6,012,836,000 after purchasing an additional 272,651 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,710,549 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $2,803,630,000 after buying an additional 379,819 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,878,029 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,401,797,000 after purchasing an additional 36,205 shares in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% in the second quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 4,182,921 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,070,702,000 after purchasing an additional 184,586 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,084,701,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.

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