Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Stock Holdings Trimmed by Voya Investment Management LLC

Voya Investment Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 44,959 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 3,315 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $10,552,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Atlantic Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NSC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $271.00 to $270.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $255.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $266.10.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC opened at $221.83 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $54.69 billion, a PE ratio of 19.19, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $229.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $244.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $201.63 and a twelve month high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The railroad operator reported $2.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.72 by ($0.03). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. The business had revenue of $2.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.49 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 36.89%.

Norfolk Southern 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.