Arizona State Retirement System Buys 114 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,889 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $15,229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $819,553,000 after acquiring an additional 3,280,579 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 48.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $671,532,000 after acquiring an additional 881,415 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at approximately $207,830,000. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at approximately $122,798,000. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 1,840.0% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 355,152 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $88,255,000 after buying an additional 336,845 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC stock opened at $238.79 on Thursday. Norfolk Southern Co. has a one year low of $206.71 and a one year high of $277.60. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $246.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $250.84. 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 company has a market capitalization of $54.07 billion, a PE ratio of 20.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.71%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on NSC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $276.11.

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.