Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Hits New 1-Year High on Earnings Beat

Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $358.30 and last traded at $355.5170, with a volume of 322516 shares. The stock had previously closed at $330.94.

The railroad operator reported $3.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.29 EPS.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 45.49%.

More Norfolk Southern News

Here are the key news stories impacting Norfolk Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Norfolk Southern reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.52 per share, topping estimates, while revenue rose to a record roughly $3.5 billion and increased 12.5% year over year. Article: Norfolk Southern (NSC) Q2 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management pointed to stronger freight demand, higher fuel surcharges, volume growth, and intermodal gains as key drivers of the quarter, which helped boost investor confidence in operating momentum. Article: Norfolk Southern rides freight demand, fuel surcharges to quarterly profit beat
• Positive Sentiment: The company said it achieved record quarterly revenue, and several outlets noted the stock rose as the revenue surge and earnings beat outweighed margin compression. Article: Norfolk Southern Stock Rises as Revenue Surge Offsets Margin Compression
• Neutral Sentiment: Norfolk Southern also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, reinforcing shareholder returns but not changing the main earnings-driven stock move. Article: Norfolk Southern earnings report and conference call

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Wall Street Zen raised Norfolk Southern from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. UBS Group set a $327.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $360.00 to $320.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Evercore set a $358.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $331.29.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,706 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $400,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 40.4% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 6,447 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,527,000 after buying an additional 1,855 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter worth about $327,000. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 64.1% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 4,275 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,094,000 after acquiring an additional 1,670 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 185.1% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 4,588 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,174,000 after acquiring an additional 2,979 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 5.1%

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $316.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $305.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.29, a P/E/G ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

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.