Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Increases Stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP increased its stake in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 126.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,413 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 8,612 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $4,630,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 75.0% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 84 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 207.1% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. MMA Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 68.9% in the third quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 103 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on NSC. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $317.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $325.00 to $320.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $354.00 to $297.00 in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $308.95.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC opened at $289.25 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $300.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $292.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $64.96 billion, a PE ratio of 22.69, a PEG ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 1-year low of $201.63 and a 1-year high of $319.94.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.46. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 23.59% and a return on equity of 18.78%. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.04 EPS. Norfolk Southern’s revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.35%.

Norfolk Southern Profile

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.