Jones Financial Companies Lllp Buys 10,311 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 154.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,986 shares of the railroad operator's stock after purchasing an additional 10,311 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $3,987,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $2,318,716,000 after purchasing an additional 196,249 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,580,925 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,133,828,000 after purchasing an additional 62,186 shares during the period. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,892,717 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $967,340,000 after purchasing an additional 103,281 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $819,553,000 after purchasing an additional 3,280,579 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 48.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $671,532,000 after purchasing an additional 881,415 shares during the period. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Norfolk Southern Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Norfolk Southern stock traded up $5.69 on Friday, reaching $243.89. 1,221,460 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,157,493. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $246.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $250.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. 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 Co. has a fifty-two week low of $206.71 and a fifty-two week high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern's payout ratio is 46.71%.

Insider Activity at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,580,979.50. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere bought 607 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the purchase, 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on NSC. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Friday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $293.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stephens upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $276.95.

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.