Ascent Group LLC Raises Holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Ascent Group LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,372 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $1,375,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 129.2% during the first quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 149 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Norfolk Southern in the first quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 883.3% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 177 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NSC. Barclays lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $235.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Baird R W raised shares of Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $292.50.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.6%

NSC stock opened at $300.02 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.39 billion, a PE ratio of 20.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.33. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52 week low of $201.63 and a 52 week high of $302.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $282.63 and a 200 day moving average of $256.10.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.24 by $0.05. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 27.51% and a return on equity of 19.35%. The business had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 36.49%.

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.