Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on CSX (NASDAQ:CSX)

CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors bought 6,478 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 114% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,024 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Susquehanna upped their price target on CSX from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $34.00 target price on shares of CSX in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on CSX from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on CSX from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.28.

CSX Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ CSX opened at $34.84 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $37.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.32. CSX has a 52-week low of $29.03 and a 52-week high of $40.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market cap of $68.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.93, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.18.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.63 billion. CSX had a return on equity of 30.52% and a net margin of 25.35%. CSX’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. Research analysts predict that CSX will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.38%. CSX’s payout ratio is 26.09%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CSX

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in CSX by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC now owns 17,704 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $614,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in CSX by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 28,210 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $978,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CSX by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 120,244 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,169,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the period. Park Place Capital Corp lifted its position in shares of CSX by 12.1% during the third quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 3,064 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FCA Corp TX boosted its position in CSX by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. FCA Corp TX now owns 115,572 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,007,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

About CSX

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 also 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.