Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) is Uncommon Cents Investing LLC’s 7th Largest Position

Uncommon Cents Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,260 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 690 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern comprises approximately 2.1% of Uncommon Cents Investing LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $6,207,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,933,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,444,000. Comerica Bank purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $48,259,000. ClearBridge Investments Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,973,000. Finally, Pathstone Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 200.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 16,077 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,198,000 after purchasing an additional 10,719 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $254.87 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.78, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $251.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $225.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $183.09 and a twelve month high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 15.03% and a return on equity of 21.06%. The business’s revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.42 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 12.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on NSC shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $272.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $238.00 to $237.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $252.38.

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.