Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective boosted by equities research analysts at Credit Suisse Group from $177.00 to $178.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Credit Suisse Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 19.81% from the company’s current price.
Several other research firms have also issued reports on NSC. Zacks Investment Research lowered Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Norfolk Southern from an “underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $127.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 26th. TD Securities increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 26th. Finally, ValuEngine downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. The company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $139.90.
Shares of Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) traded down $1.38 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $148.57. The company had a trading volume of 549,860 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,882,206. The company has a market cap of $42,930.00, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.37. Norfolk Southern has a twelve month low of $109.27 and a twelve month high of $157.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.73.
In other news, VP Thomas E. Hurlbut sold 6,175 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.61, for a total value of $800,341.75. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,568 shares in the company, valued at $980,888.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas E. Hurlbut sold 2,370 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.71, for a total transaction of $319,262.70. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 6,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $858,102.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.
Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 49.2% during the fourth quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 49,245 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $7,136,000 after purchasing an additional 16,245 shares during the period. Unison Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $1,783,000. Ascension Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $2,724,000. Pratt Collard Advisory Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $464,000. Finally, Delta Asset Management LLC TN boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 417.7% in the 4th quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN now owns 2,133 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $309,000 after buying an additional 1,721 shares in the last quarter. 72.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About Norfolk Southern
Norfolk Southern Corporation is a holding company engaged in the rail transportation business. As of December 31, 2016, the Company operated approximately 19,500 miles of road primarily in the East and Midwest. The Company is engaged in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products and finished goods primarily in the Southeast, East and Midwest.
