Dodge & Cox Increases Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Dodge & Cox raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 0.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,874,249 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,128 shares during the quarter. Norfolk Southern makes up about 1.8% of Dodge & Cox’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Dodge & Cox’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $3,266,733,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jump Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 123.4% during the third quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 10,249 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,079,000 after acquiring an additional 5,661 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 28,072 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $8,433,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Hutner Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hutner Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,454 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,239,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Guardian Investment Management acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $409,000. Finally, Legacy Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,457,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.7%

NSC stock opened at $289.25 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $64.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.26 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 12 month low of $201.63 and a 12 month high of $319.94. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $300.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $291.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

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

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NSC. UBS Group lowered shares of Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $342.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Argus raised shares of Norfolk Southern to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $354.00 to $297.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Susquehanna raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $304.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Norfolk Southern from $301.00 to $296.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $308.95.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.