Cwm LLC Buys 697 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Cwm LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 13.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,049 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 697 shares during the quarter. Cwm LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,430,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Management Corp VA acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $201,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $72,000. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 9,342 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,208,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 28,448 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,725,000 after acquiring an additional 1,541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Planning Directions Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $204,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Trading Down 0.4 %

NSC opened at $239.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $54.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $251.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $232.49. 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 posted 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). Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 11.76%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.32 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.89 earnings per share 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 $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on NSC shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $270.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $255.00 to $305.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets reduced 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 research report on Monday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $300.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $277.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $262.32.

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.