Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Cut to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research note released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Norfolk Southern’s Q4 2025 earnings at $2.82 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.79 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $12.10 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $12.07 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $2.90 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $3.43 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $3.51 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $3.34 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $3.78 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $3.37 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $14.21 EPS.

Several other analysts also recently commented on NSC. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $303.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $298.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $321.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $301.10.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $286.38 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.78. Norfolk Southern has a one year low of $201.63 and a one year high of $302.24. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $287.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $271.22. The company has a market capitalization of $64.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.93% and a net margin of 24.22%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.25 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 7th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Anil Bhatt sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.60, for a total value of $253,440.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 1,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $397,900.80. This trade represents a 38.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $282.97 per share, for a total transaction of $466,900.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,395,640. This trade represents a 15.94% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.5% in the third quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 1,041 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Massachusetts Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 5,986 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,798,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 75.0% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 84 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $420,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horan Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the second quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 1,764 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $452,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.