Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Acquires 45,353 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 1,694.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 48,029 shares of the railroad operator's stock after purchasing an additional 45,353 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $11,353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. RFG Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 1,214 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 26.1% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 9,811 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $2,319,000 after buying an additional 2,033 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 3,756 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $888,000 after buying an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $2,054,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE:NSC traded down $3.74 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $249.65. The stock had a trading volume of 1,070,458 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,307,096. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $254.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $228.77. The company has a market cap of $61.47 billion, a PE ratio of 31.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.04). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 15.03% and a return on equity of 21.06%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.42 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 12.14 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is currently 67.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $300.00 target price for the company. UBS Group raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $238.00 to $302.00 in a research note on Monday, March 4th. 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 note on Thursday, March 21st. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $261.72.

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.