Bank of Nova Scotia Buys 248,965 Shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 73.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 588,472 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 248,965 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned approximately 0.26% of Norfolk Southern worth $168,891,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 239.3% during the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 95 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Bayban bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:NSC opened at $347.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $316.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $305.84. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1 year low of $268.23 and a 1 year high of $358.60. The company 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.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.38 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.29 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is currently 45.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on NSC shares. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $322.00 to $313.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. UBS Group set a $327.00 price objective on Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings cut Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. 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, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $331.29.

Key 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

Norfolk Southern 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.