Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Buys 160,703 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 11.0% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,626,688 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 160,703 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $466,859,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of NSC. Caxton Associates LLP grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 328.0% during the first quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 338,126 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $97,042,000 after purchasing an additional 259,126 shares during the period. Capula Management Ltd lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 189.5% during the first quarter. Capula Management Ltd now owns 144,749 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $41,543,000 after purchasing an additional 94,749 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 73.3% during the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 588,472 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $168,891,000 after purchasing an additional 248,965 shares during the period. Gibbs Wealth Management bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter worth about $530,000. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.0% in the first quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 8,735 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,508,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $347.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $78.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.91. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $268.23 and a fifty-two week high of $358.60. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $316.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $305.84.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The business had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.29 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.49%.

Key Stories Impacting Norfolk Southern

Here are the key news stories impacting Norfolk Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Norfolk Southern reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.52 per share, topping estimates, while revenue rose to a record roughly $3.5 billion and increased 12.5% year over year. Article: Norfolk Southern (NSC) Q2 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management pointed to stronger freight demand, higher fuel surcharges, volume growth, and intermodal gains as key drivers of the quarter, which helped boost investor confidence in operating momentum. Article: Norfolk Southern rides freight demand, fuel surcharges to quarterly profit beat
• Positive Sentiment: The company said it achieved record quarterly revenue, and several outlets noted the stock rose as the revenue surge and earnings beat outweighed margin compression. Article: Norfolk Southern Stock Rises as Revenue Surge Offsets Margin Compression
• Neutral Sentiment: Norfolk Southern also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, reinforcing shareholder returns but not changing the main earnings-driven stock move. Article: Norfolk Southern earnings report and conference call

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on NSC shares. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $322.00 to $313.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings lowered Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $308.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $313.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $331.29.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.