Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Has $178.19 Million Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lessened its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 11.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 696,125 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 93,825 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.31% of Norfolk Southern worth $178,187,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $420,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Horan Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 1,764 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Gables Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.7% in the second quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,466 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $375,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 1,420 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,429 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $622,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $282.97 per share, for a total transaction of $466,900.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,395,640. The trade was a 15.94% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Anil Bhatt sold 900 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.60, for a total transaction of $253,440.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 1,413 shares in the company, valued at $397,900.80. This trade represents a 38.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 4,454 shares of company stock valued at $1,259,874. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE NSC opened at $296.99 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $287.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $277.01. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12-month low of $201.63 and a 12-month high of $302.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $66.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.32.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its 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 company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The business’s revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.25 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current 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 paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Robert W. Baird set a $293.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, December 5th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Zacks Research downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $321.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $235.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $297.90.

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.