Stonebridge Financial Group LLC Invests $86,000 in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 366 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $86,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,318,716,000 after acquiring an additional 196,249 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,580,925 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,133,828,000 after purchasing an additional 62,186 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,892,717 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $967,340,000 after purchasing an additional 103,281 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $819,553,000 after purchasing an additional 3,280,579 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 48.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $671,532,000 after buying an additional 881,415 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. The trade was a 3.50 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on NSC. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Susquehanna reduced their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $253.80 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $57.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.96, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $245.86 and its 200 day moving average is $250.31.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.71%.

About Norfolk Southern

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.