Empower Advisory Group LLC Takes $265,000 Position in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Empower Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 8,870 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $265,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thompson Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in CSX during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Kalos Management Inc. bought a new stake in CSX during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CSX in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. TimeScale Financial Inc. lifted its stake in CSX by 1,391.8% in the first quarter. TimeScale Financial Inc. now owns 910 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 849 shares during the period. Finally, Graham Capital Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in CSX during the 1st quarter worth about $311,675,000. 72.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CSX Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CSX opened at $30.85 on Monday. CSX Co. has a 52 week low of $25.80 and a 52 week high of $34.38. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $31.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market cap of $61.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.22.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 20th. The transportation company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.49. CSX had a net margin of 27.36% and a return on equity of 32.82%. The business had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that CSX Co. will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 31st were paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 30th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. CSX’s payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CSX. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of CSX from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Argus boosted their price target on CSX from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 25th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on CSX from $38.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 21st. UBS Group upgraded shares of CSX from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $33.00 to $37.00 in a report on Thursday, June 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of CSX from $37.00 to $38.00 in a report on Monday, July 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.43.

CSX Company Profile

CSX Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides rail-based freight transportation services. The company offers rail services; and transportation of intermodal containers and trailers, as well as other transportation services, such as rail-to-truck transfers and bulk commodity operations. It transports chemicals, agricultural and food products, minerals, automotive, forest products, fertilizers, and metals and equipment; and coal, coke, and iron ore to electricity-generating power plants, steel manufacturers, and industrial plants, as well as exports coal to deep-water port facilities.