Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target Raised to $275.00 at Stephens

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price objective boosted by equities researchers at Stephens from $260.00 to $275.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Stephens’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 6.16% from the stock’s previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.94.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NYSE NSC traded up $2.31 on Thursday, hitting $259.05. 109,035 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,215,178. Norfolk Southern has a 1-year low of $206.71 and a 1-year high of $277.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $249.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $248.69. 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 cap of $58.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.34.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.07. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 19.85% and a return on equity of 20.25%. On average, equities analysts predict that Norfolk Southern will post 11.78 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Norfolk Southern

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 350 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $249.37 per share, for a total transaction of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 2.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,330,849 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $2,318,716,000 after acquiring an additional 196,249 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $1,133,828,000 after purchasing an additional 62,186 shares in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern by 2.7% in 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 buying an additional 103,281 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 18,831.2% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 3,298,000 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $819,553,000 after buying an additional 3,280,579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in Norfolk Southern by 48.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,702,344 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $671,532,000 after buying an additional 881,415 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.