V Square Quantitative Management LLC Acquires 105 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,570 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 105 shares during the quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $603,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on NSC. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $255.90 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $206.71 and a 12-month high of $277.60. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $245.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $250.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. Equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.