PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Sells 5,569 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 1.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 393,268 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 5,569 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $97,727,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 18.8% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 9,289 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,367,000 after purchasing an additional 1,467 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.3% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 18,400 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $4,688,000 after acquiring an additional 931 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 50.3% in the 1st quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 2,209 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $563,000 after acquiring an additional 739 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 57.9% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 173,976 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $44,320,000 after acquiring an additional 63,789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $185,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $259.71 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $58.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $253.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $239.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.65. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.08 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. Norfolk Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 50.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on NSC shares. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Benchmark increased their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.68.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were bought at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This trade represents a 11.11 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.