Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Stock Price

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price target lifted by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $365.00 to $385.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 9.06% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Norfolk Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $330.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Norfolk Southern from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore set a $358.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seventeen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $339.29.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NSC stock traded up $4.47 on Friday, reaching $353.02. 285,138 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,224,154. 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 stock has a market cap of $79.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $316.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $305.84. Norfolk Southern has a 1-year low of $268.23 and a 1-year high of $358.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The railroad operator reported $3.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.20. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 21.91%.The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern will post 12.24 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $25,000. BNP Paribas acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 239.3% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 95 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Bayban acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Norfolk Southern News

Here are the key news stories impacting Norfolk Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Norfolk Southern beat estimates with adjusted EPS of $3.52 and revenue of about $3.46 billion, helped by record quarterly revenue, stronger freight demand, higher fuel surcharges, intermodal growth, and cost-cutting efforts. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: The company said rail revenue reached a record level, and multiple coverage pieces noted the earnings beat, improved demand trends, and volume growth as reasons investors bid the stock up. PR Newswire release
• Positive Sentiment: Several analyst recap articles highlighted that stronger pricing and operating performance outweighed higher fuel costs and some margin pressure, supporting the bullish reaction. Zacks article
• Neutral Sentiment: Management’s earnings-call messaging appeared focused on balancing growth and cost control, with investors likely watching for whether profitability can keep pace with revenue gains. TipRanks article
• Neutral Sentiment: One article noted that the company’s profitability was lower even as revenue hit a record, which may temper some enthusiasm if margin compression continues. Seeking Alpha article
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the beat, higher fuel expenses and weaker efficiency were cited as headwinds that could limit near-term margin expansion. Zacks article

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.