Captrust Financial Advisors Reduces Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Captrust Financial Advisors lowered its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 102,759 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 493 shares during the quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors’ holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $25,536,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NSC. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 0.3 %

NSC stock opened at $276.10 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $256.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $241.42. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 12 month low of $206.71 and a 12 month high of $277.60. The company has a market cap of $62.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.92, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 50.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Benchmark increased their price target 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. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.68.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,970,819.10. This represents a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. The trade was 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 insiders.

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.