Susquehanna Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Stock

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective raised by equities researchers at Susquehanna from $305.00 to $330.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Susquehanna’s target price points to a potential upside of 2.54% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $313.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $310.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Norfolk Southern to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $340.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $342.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, February 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Norfolk Southern currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $310.17.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC opened at $321.81 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $299.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $293.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.85. Norfolk Southern has a 52 week low of $217.33 and a 52 week high of $322.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.79 billion, a PE ratio of 25.24, a P/E/G ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 1.31.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 23.59% and a return on equity of 18.78%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.04 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern will post 12.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,084,701,000. Pentwater Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $826,128,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 545.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,306,203 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $392,396,000 after acquiring an additional 1,103,748 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $329,629,000. Finally, HBK Investments L P boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 67.7% during the 4th quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 2,130,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $614,974,000 after acquiring an additional 860,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% 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.