New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 8,945 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 171,174 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 8,945 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.08% of Norfolk Southern worth $40,175,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 255,200 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $63,417,000 after purchasing an additional 8,844 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 20.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 14,428 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $3,556,000 after purchasing an additional 2,453 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 533,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $132,565,000 after purchasing an additional 3,621 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 25,181.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 893,459 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $222,025,000 after purchasing an additional 889,925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth about $1,796,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC opened at $255.90 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $245.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $250.38. 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 1 year low of $206.71 and a 1 year high of $277.60. The firm has a market cap of $57.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) 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, analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.71%.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were bought at an average cost 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 acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, 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. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on NSC shares. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $253.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $276.11.

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.