Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Raises Position in Norfolk Southern Corporation $NSC

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its position in Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) by 31.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,631 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 6,121 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $7,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aberdeen Group plc boosted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 6.4% during the second quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 529,726 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $135,610,000 after buying an additional 31,878 shares during the last quarter. Park Place Capital Corp lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 13,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 3,668 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $1,102,000 after acquiring an additional 3,640 shares during the period. Morningstar Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $597,000. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 682.1% in the second quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 56,012 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $14,337,000 after acquiring an additional 48,850 shares during the period. Finally, West Family Investments Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter valued at approximately $260,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William Jr. Clyburn bought 204 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $294.79 per share, for a total transaction of $60,137.16. Following the purchase, the director owned 405 shares in the company, valued at $119,389.95. This represents a 101.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 1,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $282.97 per share, with a total value of $466,900.50. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,395,640. This trade represents a 15.94% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have bought 4,454 shares of company stock valued at $1,259,874 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.9%

NYSE NSC opened at $287.12 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $289.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $282.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Norfolk Southern Corporation has a 52 week low of $201.63 and a 52 week high of $302.24. The company has a market capitalization of $64.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.97 and a beta of 1.33.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by ($0.01). Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 24.22% and a return on equity of 18.93%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Corporation will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 41.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NSC has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $293.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Friday, December 5th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $314.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $307.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $288.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $299.95.

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.