Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC Sells 200 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC decreased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 13.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,315 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NSC. National Pension Service boosted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 441,597 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $104,385,000 after purchasing an additional 10,785 shares in the last quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $649,000. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,840 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $672,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,296,632 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $306,498,000 after purchasing an additional 38,080 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Petix & Botte Co bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $236,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE NSC traded down $5.36 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $226.78. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,663,554 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,350,933. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $51.23 billion, a PE ratio of 37.37, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. The company’s 50-day moving average is $248.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $234.41. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $183.09 and a fifty-two week high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.05 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.32 EPS. Analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 86.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on NSC. TD Cowen increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $236.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $270.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $175.00 in a report on Monday, January 29th. Citigroup upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Loop Capital upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $261.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $262.32.

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.