CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-five analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eighteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $40.4792.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CSX. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of CSX from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of CSX in a research note on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on CSX from $43.00 to $41.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of CSX in a research note on Thursday, February 19th.

Insider Buying and Selling at CSX

In related news, CEO Stephen F. Angel purchased 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $40.27 per share, with a total value of $1,006,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 146,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,901,165.80. This represents a 20.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Diana B. Sorfleet sold 90,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.56, for a total transaction of $3,740,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 165,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,882,876.28. The trade was a 35.21% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 188,123 shares of company stock valued at $7,454,854 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in CSX by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 16,254 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $525,000 after purchasing an additional 849 shares during the period. Resolute Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CSX during the second quarter valued at approximately $210,000. FourThought Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of CSX by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 101,818 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,322,000 after acquiring an additional 631 shares in the last quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in CSX in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new position in CSX in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $807,000. Institutional investors own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

CSX Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:CSX opened at $38.17 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $70.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.79, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.27. CSX has a fifty-two week low of $26.22 and a fifty-two week high of $43.35. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $39.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.02). CSX had a net margin of 20.50% and a return on equity of 23.88%. The company had revenue of $3.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that CSX will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. CSX’s dividend payout ratio is 36.36%.

CSX Company Profile

CSX Corporation is a leading North American transportation company that provides rail-based freight services and supply-chain solutions. Its operating subsidiary, CSX Transportation, moves a wide range of goods for customers across multiple industries, using a combination of long-haul rail service, intermodal operations and terminal and yard services. The company focuses on delivering efficient, reliable freight transportation between major production centers, consumption markets and port gateways.

CSX’s freight portfolio includes intermodal containers and trailers, bulk commodities, industrial products and specialized unit trains.