IHT Wealth Management LLC Decreases Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

IHT Wealth Management LLC decreased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 4.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,288 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 331 shares during the period. IHT Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,711,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,089,164 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,714,927,000 after buying an additional 139,485 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,694,573 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,098,472,000 after acquiring an additional 113,648 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 16.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,020,392 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $945,385,000 after acquiring an additional 580,293 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,073,933 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $721,452,000 after purchasing an additional 371,589 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $547,575,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC stock opened at $220.15 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.04, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $232.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $245.36. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $201.63 and a 52-week high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 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 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $259.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $284.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $292.00 to $272.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $290.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $268.79.

Insider Activity

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.