CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Benchmark

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Benchmark in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $40.00 price objective on the transportation company’s stock. Benchmark’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 16.48% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on CSX. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $34.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on CSX from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on CSX from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price target on CSX from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CSX presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.72.

CSX Stock Performance

CSX stock opened at $34.34 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $67.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.87, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $36.88 and its 200 day moving average is $34.35. CSX has a twelve month low of $29.03 and a twelve month high of $40.12.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The transportation company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.66 billion. CSX had a return on equity of 29.88% and a net margin of 24.75%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.48 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that CSX will post 1.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CSX

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Value Partners Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in CSX in the 3rd quarter worth $1,172,000. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of CSX by 3.1% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 24,340,514 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $748,471,000 after purchasing an additional 739,411 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of CSX by 3,241.9% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 235,304 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $8,158,000 after purchasing an additional 228,263 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of CSX by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 723,344 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $25,078,000 after purchasing an additional 34,730 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of CSX during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,279,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.