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

Shares of CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $46.42.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CSX. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $47.00 price objective (up from $40.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on CSX from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. New Street Research set a $49.00 price objective on CSX in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of CSX in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Vertical Research cut CSX from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $44.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd.

CSX Stock Performance

CSX opened at $47.11 on Thursday. CSX has a 12-month low of $31.80 and a 12-month high of $47.40. The stock has a market cap of $87.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.90, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.22. The business has a 50 day moving average of $44.27 and a 200-day moving average of $40.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.04. CSX had a return on equity of 24.47% and a net margin of 21.55%.The company had revenue of $3.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.50 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.34 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that CSX will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. CSX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.36%.

Insider Activity at CSX

In related news, Director John J. Zillmer sold 10,000 shares of CSX stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.45, for a total transaction of $464,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 353,714 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,430,015.30. This trade represents a 2.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevin S. Boone sold 136,708 shares of CSX stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.70, for a total value of $6,384,263.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 208,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,742,647.40. The trade was a 39.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CSX

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FNY Investment Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in CSX by 437.3% during the 3rd quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 720 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in CSX by 97.4% during the 1st quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 829 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in CSX during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. CrossGen Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in CSX during the 4th quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. lifted its holdings in CSX by 120.0% during the 1st quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 1,650 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About CSX

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.