Handelsbanken Fonder AB Raises Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 34.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 130,541 shares of the railroad operator's stock after buying an additional 33,460 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned about 0.06% of Norfolk Southern worth $30,638,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere bought 607 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Norfolk Southern Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:NSC traded down $1.57 during trading on Friday, hitting $247.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,493,699 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,217,662. Norfolk Southern Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $245.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $250.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company has a market capitalization of $56.12 billion, a PE ratio of 21.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share 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, research analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Susquehanna cut their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $276.11.

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.