What is Zacks Research's Forecast for NSC Q1 Earnings?

• This Railroad Stock Is Chugging Along to a New All-Time High

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Zacks Research upped their Q1 2026 EPS estimates for shares of Norfolk Southern in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, August 19th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the railroad operator will post earnings per share of $3.02 for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $3.00. The consensus estimate for Norfolk Southern's current full-year earnings is $13.00 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Norfolk Southern's Q4 2026 earnings at $3.78 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $3.38 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $14.88 EPS.

NSC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $255.00 price target on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $288.00 price target (up previously from $282.00) on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Norfolk Southern from $255.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Benchmark downgraded shares of Norfolk Southern from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $278.00 price objective on shares of Norfolk Southern in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $285.15.

• These 3 industrial stocks just got upgraded ahead of earnings

View Our Latest Report on Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NSC opened at $284.04 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $269.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $247.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $63.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.19, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.31. Norfolk Southern has a 52-week low of $201.63 and a 52-week high of $288.64.

• All Aboard! The Sell-Side Has Railroads In Reversal

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The railroad operator reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.24 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. Norfolk Southern had a net margin of 27.51% and a return on equity of 19.35%. Norfolk Southern has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Norfolk Southern

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.2% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,561,273 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $5,263,069,000 after buying an additional 239,914 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 31.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 11,319,010 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $2,680,910,000 after buying an additional 2,710,930 shares during the last quarter. Dodge & Cox raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 1.8% during the second quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 10,859,121 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $2,779,609,000 after buying an additional 192,567 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 0.8% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,822,075 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,228,064,000 after buying an additional 36,362 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Norfolk Southern by 4.6% during the second quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 4,182,921 shares of the railroad operator's stock valued at $1,070,702,000 after buying an additional 184,586 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.10% of the company's stock.

Norfolk Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Norfolk Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.49%.

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.

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