Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target Raised to $360.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price target hoisted by Susquehanna from $337.00 to $360.00 in a research note published on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the railroad operator’s stock.

NSC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $313.00 to $337.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $329.35.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 2.9%

NSC stock opened at $337.98 on Tuesday. Norfolk Southern has a 52-week low of $264.01 and a 52-week high of $339.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $75.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.47, a PEG ratio of 6.00 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $314.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $304.16.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.69 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern will post 12.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 45.49%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NSC. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $25,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 933.3% in the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 93 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 239.3% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 95 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC increased its stake in Norfolk Southern by 669.2% during the 3rd quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 100 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.