Gibson Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE: NSC – Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 22,709 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $ 6,761,000. Norfolk Southern makes up 7.0% of Gibson Wealth Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of NSC. Arlington Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $ 27,000. Vectors Research Management LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 468.8% during the fourth quarter. Vectors Research Management LLC now owns 91 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $ 27,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 141.4% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 140 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $ 42,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth approximately $ 45,000. Finally, Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth approximately $ 49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.63% of the company stock.
NSC stock opened at $ 222.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $ 53.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.98, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.37. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $ 221.44 and a 1 year high of $ 299.20. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $ 249.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $ 267.85.
Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 27th. The railroad operator reported $ 2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $ 2.91 by $ 0.02. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 26.58% and a return on equity of 21.95%. The business had revenue of $ 2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $ 2.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $ 2.66 earnings per share. The company revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Norfolk Southern announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, March 29th that allows the company to repurchase $ 10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the railroad operator to repurchase up to 14.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company management believes its shares are undervalued.
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 6th were paid a dividend of $ 1.24 per share. This represents a $ 4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 5th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.03%.
In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 1,000 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $ 241.84, for a total transaction of $ 241,840.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 34,255 shares in the company, valued at $ 8,284,229.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.
A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NSC. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating for the company. TD Securities raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $ 300.00 to $ 305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 28th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $ 356.00 to $ 350.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 7th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $ 345.00 to $ 260.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 19th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $ 300.00 to $ 255.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $ 301.82.
Norfolk Southern Company Profile: (Get Rating)
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, scrap paper, beverages, canned goods, and consumer products; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, and sand; 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.
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