Norfolk Southern (NSC) Stock Forecast & Price Target

$235.51 -0.25 (-0.11%)

Closing price 03:59 PM Eastern

Extended Trading

$235.21 -0.30 (-0.13%)

As of 06:34 PM Eastern

Norfolk Southern - Analysts' Recommendations and Stock Price Forecast (2025)

MarketBeat calculates consensus analyst ratings for stocks using the most recent rating from each Wall Street analyst that has rated a stock within the last twelve months. Each analyst's rating is normalized to a standardized rating score of 1 (sell), 2 (hold), 3 (buy) or 4 (strong buy). Analyst consensus ratings scores are calculated using the mean average of the number of normalized sell, hold, buy and strong buy ratings from Wall Street analysts. Each stock's consensus analyst rating is derived from its calculated consensus ratings score (0 to .5 = Strong Sell, .5 to 1 = Sell, 1 to 1.5 = Reduce, 1.5 to 2.5 = Hold, 2.5 to 3.0 = Moderate Buy, 3.0 to 3.5 = Buy, >3.5 = Strong Buy). MarketBeat's consensus price targets are a mean average of the most recent available price targets set by each analyst that has set a price target for the stock in the last twelve months. MarketBeat's consensus ratings and consensus price targets may differ from those calculated by other firms due to differences in methodology and available data.

Consensus Rating

Moderate Buy

Based on 19 Analyst Ratings

Sell
1

Hold
6

Buy
12

Based on 19 Wall Street analysts who have issued ratings for Norfolk Southern in the last 12 months, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy." Out of the 19 analysts, 1 has given a sell rating, 6 have given a hold rating, and 12 have given a buy rating for NSC.

Consensus Price Target

$274.84
16.70% Upside

According to the 19 analysts' twelve-month price targets for Norfolk Southern, the average price target is $274.84. The highest price target for NSC is $316.00, while the lowest price target for NSC is $175.00. The average price target represents a forecasted upside of 16.70% from the current price of $235.51.

Get the Latest News and Ratings for NSC and Related Stocks

Enter your email address to receive the latest news and analysts' ratings for Norfolk Southern and its competitors.

NSC Analyst Ratings Over Time

Type	Current Forecast 3/27/24 to 3/27/25	1 Month Ago 2/26/24 to 2/25/25	3 Months Ago 12/28/23 to 12/27/24	1 Year Ago 3/28/23 to 3/27/24
Strong Buy	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)
Buy	12 Buy rating(s)	12 Buy rating(s)	13 Buy rating(s)	10 Buy rating(s)
Hold	6 Hold rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)
Sell	1 Sell rating(s)	1 Sell rating(s)	1 Sell rating(s)	1 Sell rating(s)
Consensus Price Target	$274.84	$276.11	$275.68	$248.94
Forecasted Upside	16.70% Upside	12.74% Upside	17.19% Upside	-1.11% Downside
Consensus Rating	Moderate Buy	Moderate Buy	Moderate Buy	Moderate Buy

Remove Ads

NSC Analyst Recommendations By Month

The chart below shows how a company's ratings by analysts have changed over time. Each bar represents the previous year of ratings for that month. Within each bar, the sell ratings are shown in red, the hold ratings are shown in yellow, the buy ratings are shown in green, and the strong buy ratings are shown in dark green.

NSC Price Targets by Month

The chart below shows how a company's share price and consensus price target have changed over time. The dark blue line represents the company's actual price. The lighter blue line represents the stock's consensus price target. The even lighter blue range in the background of the two lines represents the low price target and the high price target for each stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock vs. The Competition

Type	Norfolk Southern	Transportation Companies	S&P 500
Consensus Rating Score	2.58	2.58	2.54
Consensus Rating	Moderate Buy	Moderate Buy	Moderate Buy
Predicted Upside	16.70% Upside	52.12% Upside	17.90% Upside
News Sentiment Rating	Positive News See Recent NSC News	Positive News	Positive News

Remove Ads

Recent Analyst Forecasts and Stock Ratings

Rating

Upside/Downside

Action

Time Frame

Start Date

End Date

Show

Export to Excel

Date	Brokerage	Analyst Name	Action	Rating	Price Target	Upside/Downside on Report Date
3/27/2025	Susquehanna 2 of 5 stars	Bascome Majors Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Lower Target	Neutral ➝ Neutral	$265.00 ➝ $260.00	+9.93%
3/27/2025	Wells Fargo & Company 3 of 5 stars	Christian Wetherbee Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Lower Target	Overweight ➝ Overweight	$300.00 ➝ $290.00	+23.06%
3/25/2025	Bank of America 3 of 5 stars	Ken Hoexter Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Lower Target	Buy ➝ Buy	$292.00 ➝ $272.00	+15.20%
3/7/2025	Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Initiated Coverage	Hold ➝ Buy	$293.00	+22.51%
2/3/2025	Loop Capital Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Rick Paterson Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Downgrade	Buy ➝ Hold	$289.00 ➝ $256.00	+0.22%
1/30/2025	Royal Bank of Canada Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Walter Spracklin Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Boost Target	Outperform ➝ Outperform	$275.00 ➝ $286.00	+11.12%
1/30/2025	Robert W. Baird Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Garrett Holland Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Boost Target	Neutral ➝ Neutral	$260.00 ➝ $270.00	+4.33%
1/30/2025	Benchmark Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Nathan Martin Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Reiterated Rating	Buy ➝ Buy	$285.00 ➝ $285.00	+10.34%
1/30/2025	Stephens Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Daniel Imbro Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Boost Target	Equal Weight ➝ Equal Weight	$260.00 ➝ $275.00	+6.34%
1/30/2025	JPMorgan Chase & Co. Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Brian Ossenbeck Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Boost Target	Overweight ➝ Overweight	$284.00 ➝ $286.00	+10.59%
Get the Latest News and Ratings for NSC and Related Stocks Enter your email address below to receive the latest news and analysts' ratings for Norfolk Southern and its competitors with MarketBeat's FREE daily newsletter.
11/13/2024	Barclays Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target	Overweight ➝ Overweight	$290.00 ➝ $305.00	+13.15%
11/12/2024	Citigroup Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	A. Rosa Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Boost Target	Buy ➝ Buy	$302.00 ➝ $316.00	+17.90%
10/23/2024	TD Cowen Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target	Hold ➝ Hold	$253.00 ➝ $259.00	+1.23%
10/23/2024	Evercore ISI Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Lower Target	Outperform ➝ Outperform	$276.00 ➝ $274.00	+6.74%
10/23/2024	UBS Group Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target	Buy ➝ Buy	$289.00 ➝ $309.00	+20.37%
10/11/2024	Stifel Nicolaus Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target	Hold ➝ Hold	$241.00 ➝ $245.00	-1.92%
10/10/2024	Jefferies Financial Group Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target	Buy ➝ Buy	$275.00 ➝ $280.00	+14.06%
10/9/2024	Sanford C. Bernstein Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target	Outperform ➝ Outperform	$285.00 ➝ $286.00	+16.94%
7/8/2024	Morgan Stanley Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Reiterated Rating	Underweight	$175.00	-18.93%
3/21/2024	The Goldman Sachs Group Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target	Buy ➝ Buy	$252.00 ➝ $283.00	+9.11%
1/29/2024	BMO Capital Markets Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Lower Target	Market Perform ➝ Market Perform	$250.00 ➝ $245.00	+4.99%
7/11/2023	Vertical Research Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Upgrade	Hold ➝ Buy	$260.00	+13.57%
4/27/2023	VNET Group Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Reiterated Rating	Maintains

Analyst ratings data on MarketBeat is provided by Benzinga and other data providers. This page was last refreshed on Thursday at 08:07 PM ET.

Should I Buy Norfolk Southern Stock? NSC Pros and Cons Explained

These pros and cons were generated based on recent news and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate insights. They were last updated on Sunday, March 23, 2025. Please send any questions or comments about these Norfolk Southern pros and cons to contact@marketbeat.com.

Norfolk Southern
Bull Case

Here are some ways that investors could benefit from investing in Norfolk Southern Co.:

The stock has a current price of $231.84, which is significantly lower than its 52-week high of $277.60, potentially offering a buying opportunity for investors looking for value.
Norfolk Southern Co. has a strong market capitalization of $52.50 billion, indicating a solid position in the market and the ability to withstand economic fluctuations.
The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $3.04, exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.97, showcasing its ability to generate profits and potentially rewarding shareholders.
Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $276.63, suggesting that there is optimism about the stock's future performance.
Norfolk Southern Co. has a dividend yield of 2.33%, providing investors with a steady income stream, which is attractive in a low-interest-rate environment.

Norfolk Southern
Bear Case

Investors should be bearish about investing in Norfolk Southern Co. for these reasons:

Insider ownership is relatively low at 0.19%, which may indicate a lack of confidence from those who know the company best.
The stock has experienced a decline of 0.7% recently, which could signal potential volatility and uncertainty in the market.
The company's debt-to-equity ratio is 1.16, suggesting that it has a higher level of debt compared to equity, which could pose risks in times of economic downturn.
Despite positive earnings, the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 20.06 may indicate that the stock is overvalued compared to its earnings, which could deter value-focused investors.
One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, which could reflect concerns about the company's future performance and market conditions.

NSC Forecast - Frequently Asked Questions

: According to the research reports of 19 Wall Street equities research analysts, the average twelve-month stock price forecast for Norfolk Southern is $274.84, with a high forecast of $316.00 and a low forecast of $175.00.
: 19 Wall Street analysts have issued "buy," "hold," and "sell" ratings for Norfolk Southern in the last year. There is currently 1 sell rating, 6 hold ratings and 12 buy ratings for the stock. The consensus among Wall Street analysts is that investors should "moderate buy" NSC shares.
: According to analysts, Norfolk Southern's stock has a predicted upside of 16.70% based on their 12-month stock forecasts.
: Over the previous 90 days, Norfolk Southern's stock had 1 downgrade by analysts.
: Norfolk Southern has been rated by research analysts at Bank of America, Benchmark, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Loop Capital, Robert W. Baird, Royal Bank of Canada, Stephens, Susquehanna, and Wells Fargo & Company in the past 90 days.
: Analysts like Norfolk Southern more than other "transportation" companies. The consensus rating score for Norfolk Southern is 2.58 while the average consensus rating score for "transportation" companies is 2.58. Learn more on how NSC compares to other companies.

Stock Forecasts and Research Tools

Related Companies

Today's Ratings

Top-Rated Stocks

More Ratings Tools

This page (NYSE:NSC) was last updated on 3/27/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff

From Our Partners

Get 30 Days of MarketBeat All Access for Free

Start Your 30-Day Trial

In-depth profiles and analysis for 20,000 public companies.
Real-time analyst ratings, insider transactions, earnings data, and more.
Our daily ratings and market update email newsletter.

Sign In
Create Account

Your Email Address:

Your Password:

Forgot your password?

Your Email Address:

Choose a Password:

By creating a free account, you agree to our terms of service. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Norfolk Southern (NSC) Stock Forecast & Price Target