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Norfolk Southern (NSC) Stock Forecast & Price Target

Norfolk Southern logo
$294.68 -1.94 (-0.65%)
Closing price 03:59 PM Eastern
Extended Trading
$295.00 +0.32 (+0.11%)
As of 04:29 PM Eastern
Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours price provided by Polygon.io. Learn more.

Norfolk Southern - Analysts' Recommendations and Stock Price Forecast (2025)

Consensus Rating

Sell
0
Hold
14
Buy
8

Based on 22 Wall Street analysts who have issued ratings for Norfolk Southern in the last 12 months, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold." Out of the 22 analysts, 14 have given a hold rating, and 8 have given a buy rating for NSC.

Consensus Price Target

$293.25
-0.49% Downside
According to the 22 analysts' twelve-month price targets for Norfolk Southern, the average price target is $293.25. The highest price target for NSC is $354.00, while the lowest price target for NSC is $247.00. The average price target represents a forecasted downside of -0.49% from the current price of $294.68.
MarketBeat calculates consensus analyst ratings for stocks using the most recent rating from each Wall Street analyst that has rated a stock within the last twelve months. Each analyst's rating is normalized to a standardized rating score of 1 (sell), 2 (hold), 3 (buy) or 4 (strong buy). Analyst consensus ratings scores are calculated using the mean average of the number of normalized sell, hold, buy and strong buy ratings from Wall Street analysts. Each stock's consensus analyst rating is derived from its calculated consensus ratings score (0 to .5 = Strong Sell, .5 to 1 = Sell, 1 to 1.5 = Reduce, 1.5 to 2.5 = Hold, 2.5 to 3.0 = Moderate Buy, 3.0 to 3.5 = Buy, >3.5 = Strong Buy). MarketBeat's consensus price targets are a mean average of the most recent available price targets set by each analyst that has set a price target for the stock in the last twelve months. MarketBeat's consensus ratings and consensus price targets may differ from those calculated by other firms due to differences in methodology and available data.
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NSC Analyst Ratings Over Time

TypeCurrent Forecast
10/9/24 to 10/9/25
1 Month Ago
9/9/24 to 9/9/25
3 Months Ago
7/11/24 to 7/11/25
1 Year Ago
10/10/23 to 10/9/24
Strong Buy
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
Buy
8 Buy rating(s)
7 Buy rating(s)
11 Buy rating(s)
13 Buy rating(s)
Hold
14 Hold rating(s)
14 Hold rating(s)
10 Hold rating(s)
4 Hold rating(s)
Sell
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Sell rating(s)
1 Sell rating(s)
Consensus Price Target$293.25$285.15$273.80$267.06
Forecasted Upside-0.49% Downside4.27% Upside2.75% Upside8.93% Upside
Consensus RatingHoldHoldModerate BuyModerate Buy

NSC Analyst Recommendations By Month

The chart below shows how a company's ratings by analysts have changed over time. Each bar represents the previous year of ratings for that month. Within each bar, the sell ratings are shown in red, the hold ratings are shown in yellow, the buy ratings are shown in green, and the strong buy ratings are shown in dark green.
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NSC Price Targets by Month

The chart below shows how a company's share price and consensus price target have changed over time. The dark blue line represents the company's actual price. The lighter blue line represents the stock's consensus price target. The even lighter blue range in the background of the two lines represents the low price target and the high price target for each stock.
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Norfolk Southern Stock vs. The Competition

TypeNorfolk SouthernTransportation CompaniesS&P 500
Consensus Rating Score
2.36
2.15
2.52
Consensus RatingHoldHoldModerate Buy
Predicted Upside-0.66% Downside22.24% Upside173.09% Upside
News Sentiment Rating
Positive News

See Recent NSC News
Positive News
Positive News
DateBrokerageAnalystActionRatingPrice TargetReport Date
Upside/Downside
Details
10/8/2025JPMorgan Chase & Co.
2 of 5 stars
Brian Ossenbeck
Brian Ossenbeck
3 of 5 stars
Boost TargetNeutral$288.00 ➝ $303.00+2.13%
10/8/2025Weiss Ratings
0 of 5 stars
 Reiterated RatingBuy (B-)
10/2/2025Barclays
3 of 5 stars
Brandon Oglenski
Brandon Oglenski
5 of 5 stars
Boost TargetOverweight$300.00 ➝ $320.00+7.17%
10/1/2025Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft
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Boost TargetBuy$290.00 ➝ $354.00+18.55%
9/25/2025Susquehanna
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Boost TargetNeutral$284.00 ➝ $295.000.00%
9/25/2025Evercore ISI
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Boost Target$289.00 ➝ $298.00+0.13%
9/16/2025Loop Capital
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 Boost TargetHold$235.00 ➝ $278.00-0.59%
7/30/2025Citigroup
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Boost TargetNeutral$288.00 ➝ $305.00+7.98%
7/30/2025Benchmark
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DowngradeBuyHold
7/29/2025Royal Bank Of Canada
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 DowngradeModerate BuyHold
7/25/2025Jefferies Financial Group
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Reiterated RatingBuyHold$300.00+7.78%
7/22/2025Robert W. Baird
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Boost TargetNeutral$255.00 ➝ $300.00+7.91%
7/21/2025Sanford C. Bernstein
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Boost TargetOutperform$295.00 ➝ $305.00+10.11%
7/21/2025TD Cowen
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UpgradeHoldBuy$263.00 ➝ $323.00+16.61%
7/17/2025Bank of America
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Boost TargetBuy$290.00 ➝ $305.00+17.18%
7/1/2025Baird R W
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UpgradeHold
6/2/2025The Goldman Sachs Group
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Reiterated RatingBuyNeutral$278.00+12.50%
5/30/2025UBS Group
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Boost TargetBuy$275.00 ➝ $279.00+12.19%
4/24/2025BMO Capital Markets
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Reiterated RatingMarket Perform$255.00+13.14%
4/14/2025Stifel Nicolaus
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Lower TargetHold$265.00 ➝ $247.00+11.74%
3/27/2025Wells Fargo & Company
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Lower TargetOverweight$300.00 ➝ $290.00+23.06%
1/30/2025Stephens
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Boost TargetEqual Weight$260.00 ➝ $275.00+6.34%
7/8/2024Morgan Stanley
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 Reiterated RatingUnderweight$175.00-18.93%

Analyst ratings data on MarketBeat is provided by Benzinga and other data providers. This page was last refreshed on Thursday at 05:45 PM ET.


Should I Buy Norfolk Southern Stock? NSC Pros and Cons Explained

These pros and cons were generated based on recent news and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate insights. They were last updated on Sunday, October 5, 2025. Please send any questions or comments about these Norfolk Southern pros and cons to contact@marketbeat.com.

Norfolk Southern
Bull Case

green Wall Street bull icon

Here are some ways that investors could benefit from investing in Norfolk Southern Co.:

  • The current stock price is around $294, reflecting a strong performance in the market.
  • Norfolk Southern Co. reported earnings per share (EPS) of $3.29 for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, which indicates robust financial health.
  • The company has a high net margin of over 27%, suggesting efficient management and profitability.
  • With a return on equity of 19.35%, Norfolk Southern Co. demonstrates effective use of shareholders' equity to generate profits.
  • The recent quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $5.40, offers a steady income stream for investors, with a yield of 1.8%.

Norfolk Southern
Bear Case

red Wall Street bear icon

Investors should be bearish about investing in Norfolk Southern Co. for these reasons:

  • The company's debt-to-equity ratio is 1.11, indicating a relatively high level of debt compared to equity, which could pose risks in economic downturns.
  • Despite recent upgrades, the consensus rating remains a "Hold," suggesting that analysts are cautious about significant price increases in the near term.
  • Norfolk Southern Co. operates in a competitive industry, which may impact its market share and pricing power.
  • The stock has shown volatility, with a beta of 1.29, indicating that it may be more sensitive to market fluctuations compared to the overall market.
  • Analysts predict a modest EPS growth for the current year, which may limit potential returns for investors looking for aggressive growth.

NSC Forecast - Frequently Asked Questions

According to the research reports of 22 Wall Street equities research analysts, the average twelve-month stock price forecast for Norfolk Southern is $293.25, with a high forecast of $354.00 and a low forecast of $247.00.

22 Wall Street analysts have issued "buy," "hold," and "sell" ratings for Norfolk Southern in the last year. There are currently 14 hold ratings and 8 buy ratings for the stock. The consensus among Wall Street analysts is that investors should "hold" NSC shares. A hold rating indicates that analysts believe investors should maintain any existing positions they have in NSC, but not buy additional shares or sell existing shares.

According to analysts, Norfolk Southern's stock has a predicted downside of -0.49% based on their 12-month stock forecasts.

Over the previous 90 days, Norfolk Southern's stock had 3 downgrades and 1 upgrade by analysts.

Analysts like Norfolk Southern more than other "transportation" companies. The consensus rating score for Norfolk Southern is 2.36 while the average consensus rating score for "transportation" companies is 2.15. Learn more on how NSC compares to other companies.


This page (NYSE:NSC) was last updated on 10/9/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff
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