Magnetar Financial LLC Purchases Shares of 358,330 Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 358,330 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $107,646,000. Norfolk Southern comprises about 0.7% of Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of NSC. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 75.0% in the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 84 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 207.1% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. MMA Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 68.9% in the 3rd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 103 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on NSC shares. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Zacks Research raised Norfolk Southern from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $340.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $317.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Evercore raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $299.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eighteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $308.95.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NSC opened at $298.96 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $300.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $291.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.45, a PEG ratio of 5.46 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52 week low of $201.63 and a 52 week high of $319.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.78% and a net margin of 23.59%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.04 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 42.35%.

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.