abrdn plc Decreases Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

abrdn plc lowered its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 380,572 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 24,094 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $89,339,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Trust Point Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 1,060 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $249,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $207,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 109.8% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 12,766 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,996,000 after acquiring an additional 6,680 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,741 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,286,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere bought 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC stock opened at $253.14 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $248.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $249.29. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 52-week low of $206.71 and a 52-week high of $277.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. Equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $285.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $276.11.

About Norfolk Southern

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.