Truist Financial Corp Trims Stock Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Truist Financial Corp lessened its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 234,993 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 15,069 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp owned about 0.10% of Norfolk Southern worth $55,548,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NSC. Bfsg LLC lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 33,072 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $6,513,000 after purchasing an additional 3,759 shares during the period. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,108 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $809,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $273,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 127,150 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $25,040,000 after acquiring an additional 1,237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baxter Bros Inc. raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Baxter Bros Inc. now owns 27,912 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $5,497,000 after acquiring an additional 1,071 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $255.00 to $305.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $262.32.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC traded down $0.89 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $239.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,461,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 977,733. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $251.83 and a 200 day moving average of $232.92. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $183.09 and a twelve month high of $263.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.20 billion, a PE ratio of 38.64, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.32 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 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. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.96%.

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.