Cerity Partners LLC Trims Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Cerity Partners LLC decreased its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 1.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 175,300 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,151 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC owned about 0.08% of Norfolk Southern worth $52,662,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,706 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $400,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 8.3% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 2,915 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $690,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 1,537.9% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 475 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,879 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,156,000 after acquiring an additional 594 shares during the period. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 11.6% in the 1st quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,977 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $468,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on NSC shares. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $235.00 to $278.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Zacks Research cut shares of Norfolk Southern from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Robert W. Baird set a $293.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday, December 5th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $321.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Seven 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $299.45.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $284.05 on Thursday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a twelve month low of $201.63 and a twelve month high of $302.24. The company has a market capitalization of $63.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.00 and a beta of 1.33. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $288.77 and a 200 day moving average of $282.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.31 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during 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 period last year, the company posted $3.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director William Jr. Clyburn bought 204 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $294.79 per share, with a total value of $60,137.16. Following the transaction, the director owned 405 shares in the company, valued at $119,389.95. This represents a 101.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 acquisition, the director owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,395,640. The trade was a 15.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased a total of 4,454 shares of company stock valued at $1,259,874 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

About Norfolk Southern

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.