Evercore lowers Norfolk Southern target, adds to ‘Tactical Underperform’ list

Evercore ISI lowered the firm’s price target on Norfolk Southern (NSC) to $235 from $250 and keeps an Outperform rating on the shares, which the analyst has added to the firm’s “Tactical Underperform” list. Though the firm had higher expectations for rail industry volume recovery, productivity gains, and overall EPS growth at the beginning of this year, 2023 is “likely to be viewed as a transition year for the industry” in retrospect, the analyst tells investors. Though “widely anticipated” misses are likely forthcoming next month, there is still near-term downside risk to those stocks where the magnitude could surprise, says the analyst, who adds that CSX (CSX) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CP) have the least downside risk in Q3 and remain the analyst’s top picks.