Choreo LLC Acquires 475 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Choreo LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,334 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,679,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 3,255 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $769,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Blue Chip Partners LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Blue Chip Partners LLC now owns 7,654 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,809,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Fiduciary Group LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC now owns 9,986 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,360,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Kapstone Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth about $212,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 190,945 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $45,137,000 after acquiring an additional 21,532 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 29th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $277.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $305.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.32.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $241.34 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $251.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $233.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12-month low of $183.09 and a 12-month high of $263.66. The firm has a market cap of $54.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.86, a PEG ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.58 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.32 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

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.