Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 62,702 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,853,578 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 62,702 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.82% of Norfolk Southern worth $438,149,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2,777.8% during the third quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 2,590 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $510,000 after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 34.0% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,356 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $858,000 after buying an additional 1,105 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.2% in the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 432,223 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $85,118,000 after buying an additional 5,256 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 5.4% in the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,450 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $876,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Girard Partners LTD. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 7.8% in the third quarter. Girard Partners LTD. now owns 1,245 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $245,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $300.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Norfolk Southern from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $272.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. One 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $261.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total transaction of $1,902,593.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC traded down $5.62 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $224.71. The stock had a trading volume of 901,621 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,373,093. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $244.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $236.99.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.32 EPS. Norfolk Southern's quarterly revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.