Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Stock

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) had its target price hoisted by Barclays from $290.00 to $305.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the railroad operator's stock.

NSC has been the topic of several other reports. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $289.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock traded up $1.81 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $269.26. 725,039 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,256,841. Norfolk Southern has a twelve month low of $201.44 and a twelve month high of $277.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $252.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $238.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.08 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.65 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern will post 11.82 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.70%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $255.00 per share, for a total transaction of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,550,000. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Norfolk Southern

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NSC. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth $25,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the first quarter worth $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the second quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

About Norfolk Southern

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.