Norfolk Southern (NSC) Scheduled to Post Earnings on Wednesday

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) is scheduled to announce its earnings results before the market opens on Wednesday, April 24th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $2.64 per share for the quarter. Norfolk Southern has set its FY 2024 guidance at EPS.Persons interested in registering for the company's earnings conference call can do so using this link.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.09 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 21.06% and a net margin of 15.03%. The business's revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.42 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect Norfolk Southern to post $12 EPS for the current fiscal year and $14 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE NSC traded down $3.57 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $239.34. 1,010,921 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,280,049. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. Norfolk Southern has a twelve month low of $183.09 and a twelve month high of $263.66. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $253.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $230.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.84, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio is currently 67.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 95,518.3% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,028,232 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $746,217,000 after buying an additional 3,025,065 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $537,007,000. Dodge & Cox raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 8,233,372 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,946,204,000 after acquiring an additional 1,810,658 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 86.7% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,724,821 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $671,451,000 after buying an additional 1,265,666 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 33.5% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,546,214 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $627,438,000 after acquiring an additional 638,384 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on NSC shares. Morgan Stanley cut Norfolk Southern from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $185.00 to $175.00 in a report on Monday, January 29th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays upgraded Norfolk Southern from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $305.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $262.33.

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.