What Happened?
Shares of freight transportation company Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) jumped 8.2% in the pre-market session after the company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share on its common stock.
The dividend was made payable on August 20, 2025, to all shareholders of record as of August 1, 2025. This announcement continued the company's long-standing practice of returning capital to shareholders, marking the 172nd consecutive quarter it has paid a dividend since its formation in 1982. The move in the stock occurred as investors looked ahead to the company's second-quarter 2025 financial results, which were scheduled for release on July 29, 2025.
After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $278.38, up 0.4% from previous close.
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What Is The Market Telling Us
Norfolk Southern’s shares are not very volatile and have only had 5 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful, although it might not be something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The biggest move we wrote about over the last year was 12 months ago when the stock gained 12.2% on the news that the company reported second-quarter earnings results that exceeded analysts' revenue expectations by a small amount but exceeded EPS expectations by a convincing amount. Overall, this quarter seemed strong and shareholders should feel optimistic.
Norfolk Southern is up 18.7% since the beginning of the year, and at $278.38 per share, has set a new 52-week high. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Norfolk Southern’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,472.
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