UBS Upgrades Norfolk Southern (NSC) to Buy

UBS upgraded Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) from Neutral to Buy with a price target of $102.00 (from $84.00), saying the strong Q1 proves the company can deliver on their plan.

Analyst Thomas Wadewitz commented, "On Thursday night NSC reported 1Q EPS of $1.29/share which was sharply above our estimate of $0.99 and Consensus of $0.98/share. Adjusting for several items that may not recur ($32 mm of the materials expense reduction, $10 mm of LDs, and a tax rate benefit of about $9 mm), the adjusted number of $1.17/share would still have been significantly above our expectation. Most importantly, we believe the strong report amid a challenging revenue environment shows that NSC has the ability to deliver on its restructuring / operating improvement program and drive EPS growth. We are raising our rating to Buy from Neutral."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Norfolk Southern click here. For more ratings news on Norfolk Southern click here.

Shares of Norfolk Southern closed at $82.63 yesterday.

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