Citigroup Boosts Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) Price Target to $302.00

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) had its price target lifted by investment analysts at Citigroup from $294.00 to $302.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the railroad operator’s stock. Citigroup’s price target points to a potential upside of 15.96% from the stock’s current price.

NSC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Norfolk Southern from $267.00 to $272.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Norfolk Southern from $265.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Norfolk Southern from $285.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Norfolk Southern from $251.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $266.61.

Norfolk Southern Stock Up 4.9 %

Shares of NSC traded up $12.27 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $260.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,284,178 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,257,816. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.94, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s 50-day moving average is $248.04 and its 200-day moving average is $236.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. Norfolk Southern has a 52-week low of $183.09 and a 52-week high of $263.66.

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The railroad operator reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. Norfolk Southern had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 14.85%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.95 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Norfolk Southern will post 11.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total transaction of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Norfolk Southern news, CEO Alan H. Shaw sold 51,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.98, for a total value of $13,138,173.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,970,819.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sameh Fahmy bought 700 shares of Norfolk Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $245.15 per share, with a total value of $171,605.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 7,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,887,655. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NSC. Cedar Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Norfolk Southern in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of Norfolk Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Norfolk Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.10% of the company’s stock.

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.