Hanson & Doremus Investment Management Acquires 3,913 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Hanson & Doremus Investment Management boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 229.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,616 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 3,913 shares during the quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,706 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $400,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 40.4% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 6,447 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,527,000 after acquiring an additional 1,855 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth approximately $327,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 64.1% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 4,275 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,094,000 after acquiring an additional 1,670 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 185.1% during the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 4,588 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,174,000 after acquiring an additional 2,979 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Evercore set a $325.00 target price on Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen raised Norfolk Southern from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $330.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $322.71.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $303.66 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $309.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $300.77. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52-week low of $251.62 and a 52-week high of $326.00. The company has a market cap of $68.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.58, a P/E/G ratio of 5.54 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 (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.69 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.49%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.