First Trust Advisors LP Sells 3,638 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

First Trust Advisors LP cut its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 1.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 263,425 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 3,638 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $67,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the first quarter worth about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 423.8% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 110 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 58.5% during the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 130 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 30.5% during the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 184 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $281.86 per share, for a total transaction of $732,836.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,973,020. This represents a 59.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $282.97 per share, for a total transaction of $466,900.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,395,640. This represents a 15.94% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC stock opened at $293.67 on Monday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1-year low of $201.63 and a 1-year high of $302.24. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $288.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $275.64. The company has a market capitalization of $65.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.40, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by ($0.01). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.25 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on NSC. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 25th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $300.75.

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.