Everpar Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Everpar Advisors LLC bought a new position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 2,745 shares of the railroad operator’s stock, valued at approximately $649,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $2,933,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $1,444,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC boosted its position in Norfolk Southern by 200.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 16,077 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,198,000 after acquiring an additional 10,719 shares during the period. ClearBridge Investments Ltd purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,973,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Norfolk Southern by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 187,259 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $36,877,000 after buying an additional 16,727 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on NSC. Citigroup boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Barclays upgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $255.00 to $305.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $277.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Norfolk Southern from $250.00 to $245.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.32.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NSC traded up $1.86 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $232.33. 1,296,309 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,327,475. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $248.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $234.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $52.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The railroad operator reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.58 by ($0.09). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.32 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 20th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.96%.

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.