Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) Shares Sold by Pathway Financial Advisers LLC

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC reduced its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) by 99.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,693 shares of the railroad operator's stock after selling 889,766 shares during the quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC's holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $867,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at about $144,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $63,000. CX Institutional lifted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 2,319 shares of the railroad operator's stock worth $576,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 84,364 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $20,965,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 4.2% in the third quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Loop Capital downgraded Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $289.00 to $256.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $285.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. One equities 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NSC traded down $1.32 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $255.90. 908,786 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,245,843. The business's 50-day moving average price is $245.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $250.45. The company has a market capitalization of $57.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $206.71 and a twelve month high of $277.60.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio is currently 46.71%.

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.