Lafayette Investments Inc. Decreases Position in Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC)

Lafayette Investments Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Norfolk Southern Co. (NYSE:NSC) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 35,272 shares of the railroad operator’s stock after selling 54 shares during the quarter. Norfolk Southern comprises approximately 2.1% of Lafayette Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in Norfolk Southern were worth $8,338,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 9.2% during the first quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 852 shares of the railroad operator’s stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new stake in Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at approximately $81,000. United Bank lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 2.0% in the first quarter. United Bank now owns 7,581 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,162,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 4.6% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 8,640 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $2,464,000 after buying an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Norfolk Southern by 13.3% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,946 shares of the railroad operator’s stock valued at $555,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

Norfolk Southern Price Performance

Norfolk Southern stock traded up $0.78 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $240.12. The stock had a trading volume of 922,154 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,275,277. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.94, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.30. Norfolk Southern Co. has a 1-year low of $183.09 and a 1-year high of $263.66. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $253.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $230.45.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The railroad operator reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.09 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 15.03% and a return on equity of 21.06%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.42 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Norfolk Southern Co. will post 11.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Norfolk Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. Norfolk Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NSC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Norfolk Southern from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Susquehanna cut their price target on Norfolk Southern from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $233.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Norfolk Southern from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $238.00 to $302.00 in a research note on Monday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $262.74.

About Norfolk Southern

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.