Groupama Asset Managment Purchases 3,821 Shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Groupama Asset Managment lifted its position in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 49.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,609 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after buying an additional 3,821 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $2,711,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NSC. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Norfolk Southern by 3.6% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 255,200 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $63,417,000 after acquiring an additional 8,844 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $1,796,000. Grandview Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 4th quarter worth $918,000. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its position in Norfolk Southern by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 5,678 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $1,333,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Finally, Clarendon Private LLC bought a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the fourth quarter worth $309,000. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Norfolk Southern news, Director Gilbert H. Lamphere purchased 607 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $259.86 per share, with a total value of $157,735.02. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $646,271.82. The trade was a 32.29 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NSC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stephens raised their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Norfolk Southern in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $293.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $275.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. One equities 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Norfolk Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $274.84.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

NSC stock opened at $236.46 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $244.81 and a 200 day moving average of $248.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $53.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.45, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.35. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1 year low of $206.71 and a 1 year high of $277.60.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 13 EPS for the current year.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.71%.

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.