Allworth Financial LP Purchases 3,043 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 26.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,391 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,043 shares during the quarter. Allworth Financial LP’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $4,155,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,825,837 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $6,012,836,000 after acquiring an additional 272,651 shares during the last quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $826,128,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,179,610 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $654,757,000 after acquiring an additional 118,697 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,744,074 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $523,937,000 after acquiring an additional 76,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 545.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,306,203 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $392,396,000 after acquiring an additional 1,103,748 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $315.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $296.00 to $292.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Zacks Research raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Evercore set a $325.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $319.83.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE NSC opened at $316.85 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $299.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $296.01. 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 one year low of $236.37 and a one year high of $323.37. The firm has a market cap of $71.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.69, a PEG ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.69 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.49%.

Norfolk Southern 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.