ING Groep NV Has $4.41 Million Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

ING Groep NV trimmed its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 41.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,742 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 12,658 shares during the period. ING Groep NV's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $4,409,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. grew its position in Norfolk Southern by 41.8% during the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 26,913 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $6,859,000 after purchasing an additional 7,938 shares in the last quarter. First Foundation Advisors increased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 13.5% in the first quarter. First Foundation Advisors now owns 1,008 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 5.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,623,690 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $5,001,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088,072 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp acquired a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the first quarter valued at $218,000. Finally, Patten & Patten Inc. TN grew its stake in Norfolk Southern by 7.9% in the first quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 21,088 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $5,375,000 after purchasing an additional 1,550 shares in the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NSC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $263.00 target price on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $272.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Benchmark increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $275.68.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

NSC stock traded down $3.50 during trading on Friday, reaching $261.26. 1,152,740 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,256,220. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $252.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $238.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company has a market capitalization of $59.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $205.70 and a twelve month high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The railroad operator reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.14. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 20.25% and a net margin of 19.85%. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. Norfolk Southern's revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.70%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In related news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $255.00 per share, with a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,550,000. The trade was a 11.11 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. The trade was a 59.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Norfolk Southern Company 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.