Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Decreases Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio trimmed its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 7.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,481 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 8,106 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $27,394,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $556,797,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $5,001,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,072 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 600.3% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,021,312 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $241,421,000 after acquiring an additional 875,473 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1,956.8% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 451,226 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $106,661,000 after acquiring an additional 429,288 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 23,585.8% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 351,261 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $83,031,000 after acquiring an additional 349,778 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $1,902,593.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CMO Claude E. Elkins sold 8,329 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.43, for a total value of $1,902,593.47. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $219.25 per share, for a total transaction of $438,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 7,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,534,750. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on NSC shares. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $267.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $245.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $264.24.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC stock traded up $2.38 on Monday, hitting $249.60. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,451,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,315,245. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $222.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $237.61. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $183.09 and a 1 year high of $263.66. The stock has a market cap of $56.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 19.64%. Norfolk Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.95 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 86.96%.

Norfolk Southern Company Profile

Norfolk Southern Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods in the United States. The company transports agriculture, forest, and consumer products comprising soybeans, wheat, corn, fertilizers, livestock and poultry feed, food products, food oils, flour, sweeteners, ethanol, lumber and wood products, pulp board and paper products, wood fibers, wood pulp, beverages, and canned goods; chemicals consist of sulfur and related chemicals, petroleum products comprising crude oil, chlorine and bleaching compounds, plastics, rubber, industrial chemicals, chemical wastes, sand, and natural gas liquids; metals and construction materials, such as steel, aluminum products, machinery, scrap metals, cement, aggregates, minerals, clay, transportation equipment, and military-related products; and automotive, including finished motor vehicles and automotive parts, as well as coal.