Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Shares Sold by Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. lessened its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 18.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,320 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 5,494 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $6,225,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Morningstar Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $597,000. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 682.1% during the second quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 56,012 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $14,337,000 after purchasing an additional 48,850 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 10.4% in the second quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 116,795 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $29,896,000 after buying an additional 10,990 shares in the last quarter. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 52.5% during the 2nd quarter. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC now owns 4,441 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,137,000 after buying an additional 1,528 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 76,057 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $19,468,000 after buying an additional 3,367 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NSC opened at $284.23 on Friday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $201.63 and a fifty-two week high of $302.24. The company has a market capitalization of $63.78 billion, a PE ratio of 21.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $286.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $266.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.25 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $321.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $315.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $298.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $299.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $282.97 per share, with a total value of $466,900.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,395,640. This trade represents a 15.94% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard H. Anderson purchased 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $281.86 per share, for a total transaction of $732,836.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 7,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,973,020. The trade was a 59.09% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

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.