UPDATE: BMO Capital Markets Reiterates Outperform Rating, Raises PT on Norfolk Southern Corp.

In a report published Wednesday, BMO Capital Markets reiterated its Outperform rating on Norfolk Southern Corp. (NYSE: NSC), and raised its price target from $77.00 to $80.00.BMO Capital Markets noted, “The growth outlook for the merchandise and intermodal segments is very positive and the company's network is operating at a record level of efficiency, which we expect will accommodate the growth at very low incremental costs over the coming few quarters. On the other hand, the outlook for the coal segment remains weak although we suspect that further material downside from the Q4/12 run rate is very unlikely in the absence of a step down in gas prices back to a low $3 level or lower. We are modeling a return to solid earnings growth by H2/13 notwithstanding flat coal revenues.”Norfolk Southern Corp. closed on Tuesday at $66.94.