Aviso Financial Inc. Trims Stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Aviso Financial Inc. trimmed its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 14.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,397 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 413 shares during the period. Aviso Financial Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $614,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 529,726 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $135,610,000 after buying an additional 31,878 shares during the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth approximately $597,000. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 682.1% in the second quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 56,012 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $14,337,000 after buying an additional 48,850 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 10.4% during the second quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 116,795 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $29,896,000 after acquiring an additional 10,990 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 76,057 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $19,468,000 after buying an additional 3,367 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Richard H. Anderson bought 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $281.86 per share, for a total transaction of $732,836.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,973,020. This represents a 59.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 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 owned 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,395,640. This represents a 15.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $289.28 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.91 billion, a PE ratio of 22.07, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $288.02 and its 200 day moving average is $272.83. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $201.63 and a fifty-two week high of $302.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.25 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on NSC shares. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $235.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $303.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $316.00 to $307.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $301.10.

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.