Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 2,000 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund trimmed its holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,062 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $5,882,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NSC. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern during the third quarter worth about $30,000. 75.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Norfolk Southern

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy purchased 350 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 acquisition, the director now owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at $2,580,979.50. This trade represents a 3.50 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $259.86 per share, for a total transaction of $157,735.02. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Norfolk Southern stock opened at $243.75 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $245.47 and a 200-day moving average of $250.79. 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 company has a market capitalization of $55.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, equities research analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s payout ratio is presently 46.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays upped their target price on Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Norfolk Southern from $284.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $302.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $276.11.

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.