Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Purchases 118,445 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 34.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 466,689 shares of the railroad operator's stock after purchasing an additional 118,445 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.21% of Norfolk Southern worth $109,532,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays lowered their target price on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $290.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $305.00 to $284.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $298.00 to $259.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $268.68.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Shares of NSC traded up $2.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $217.94. 1,401,075 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,248,782. The company has a market cap of $53.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $201.63 and a 1 year high of $277.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $237.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $246.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.04% and a net margin of 21.63%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. 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 Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.71%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.