Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. Has $15.03 Million Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. lessened its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 3.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,477 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,476 shares during the quarter. Norfolk Southern accounts for approximately 1.0% of Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $15,029,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Benchmark boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $274.16.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE NSC opened at $250.09 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $56.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.48, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $190.01 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company has a 50 day moving average of $250.38 and a 200-day moving average of $237.10.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.65 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.70%.

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.