Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC Shares Acquired by Cobalt Capital Management Inc.

Cobalt Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 11.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 100,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Norfolk Southern accounts for 12.8% of Cobalt Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Cobalt Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $28,872,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,825,837 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $6,012,836,000 after purchasing an additional 272,651 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,710,549 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,803,630,000 after acquiring an additional 379,819 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,878,029 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,401,797,000 after acquiring an additional 36,205 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $1,084,701,000. Finally, Pentwater Capital Management LP grew its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP now owns 3,019,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $871,646,000 after acquiring an additional 269,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $330.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $322.00 to $313.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $296.00 to $292.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $322.71.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC stock opened at $300.38 on Thursday. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12-month low of $250.65 and a 12-month high of $326.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.74 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $309.49 and a 200-day moving average of $300.56.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.16. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.69 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 12.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is 45.49%.

About Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major U.S. freight railroad company that provides rail transportation and related logistics services. As a Class I carrier, the company operates an extensive network across the eastern United States and offers scheduled freight service for a broad range of industries. Its core operations include long-haul and regional rail freight transportation, intermodal services that move containers and trailers between rail and other modes, and terminal and switching services that support efficient rail shipments for industrial and port customers.

The company transports a variety of commodities, serving sectors such as coal and energy, automotive and automotive parts, chemicals, agriculture, metals and construction materials, and consumer goods.