Investors Buy High Volume of CSX Call Options (NASDAQ:CSX)

CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) saw some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 19,660 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 179% compared to the typical daily volume of 7,046 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on CSX. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $33.00 price objective (down previously from $34.00) on shares of CSX in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of CSX from $35.00 to $33.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of CSX from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of CSX from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.95.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CSX

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CSX. Modern Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of CSX by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,518 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 1,564 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of CSX in the first quarter valued at about $29,614,000. Foresight Group Ltd Liability Partnership bought a new position in CSX during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,504,000. Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 43,356 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,276,000 after acquiring an additional 3,834 shares during the period. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of CSX by 32.8% during the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 9,875 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 2,438 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CSX Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of CSX stock traded up $0.85 on Tuesday, hitting $32.83. The company had a trading volume of 14,256,071 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,160,541. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $29.32 and a 200-day moving average of $31.32. CSX has a 1 year low of $26.22 and a 1 year high of $37.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.24.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The transportation company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.53 billion. CSX had a return on equity of 28.15% and a net margin of 23.95%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that CSX will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. CSX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.14%.

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.