Atlanta-based Norfolk Southern urges shareholders to reject activist investor's takeover plan at the railroad

A Norfolk Southern freight train makes it way through Homestead, Pa. on April 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

This story was updated at 6:43 p.m.

Norfolk Southern wants its shareholders to back its current management team and strategy and reject a bid from a group of investors seeking to take control of the railroad.

The Atlanta-based railroad urged shareholders to reject Ancora Holdings’ eight board nominees in a proxy statement Monday morning with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Norfolk Southern also nominated two new board members of its own — a former Amtrak CEO and a former U.S. Senator — that the railroad argues will provide valuable fresh perspective without derailing its current plan.