Northcape Wealth Management LLC Invests $955,000 in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Northcape Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 3,037 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $955,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 3,090 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,216 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $929,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,108 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $318,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Bar Harbor Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 6,290 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Apollon Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 4.3% during the first quarter. Apollon Financial LLC now owns 881 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $253,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on NSC. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $363.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Evercore set a $358.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Stephens upgraded Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $348.00.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $345.56 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $77.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.00 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $326.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $312.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52-week low of $268.23 and a 52-week high of $358.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.38 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.02% and a return on equity of 18.21%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.29 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 46.08%.

Norfolk Southern Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.