New York Life Investment Management LLC Has $7.12 Million Stock Holdings in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

New York Life Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,331 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $7,119,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lineweaver Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Lineweaver Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,165 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,214,000 after buying an additional 636 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 19,400 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $4,553,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,772 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $651,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. LifeGoal Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern during the fourth quarter worth $246,000. Finally, Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC increased its position in Norfolk Southern by 32.6% during the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 2,756 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $647,000 after buying an additional 678 shares during the last quarter. 75.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on NSC shares. Stephens increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target 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. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $276.11.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE NSC opened at $245.96 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $246.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $250.77. Norfolk Southern Co. has a twelve month low of $206.71 and a twelve month high of $277.60. The stock has a market cap of $55.69 billion, a PE ratio of 21.28, a PEG ratio of 2.31 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 net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 20.04%. On average, research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Sameh Fahmy acquired 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $249.37 per share, with a total value of $87,279.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,580,979.50. This represents a 3.50 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere acquired 607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,271.82. This represents a 32.29 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

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.