Handelsbanken Fonder AB Grows Stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 8.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 99,438 shares of the railroad operator's stock after purchasing an additional 7,547 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $23,505,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,049 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $1,430,000 after buying an additional 697 shares in the last quarter. Capital Management Corp VA acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $201,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $72,000. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 9,342 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $2,208,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 28,448 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $6,725,000 after buying an additional 1,541 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NSC stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $245.03. 1,114,960 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,265,471. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $252.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $232.09. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The company has a market cap of $60.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.42 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is 67.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on NSC shares. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 29th. 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. Citigroup raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Loop Capital raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $262.74.

Norfolk Southern 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.