CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $38.61.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on CSX from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Bank of America lowered shares of CSX from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $37.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of CSX in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $42.00 price objective on the stock. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of CSX from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price target on CSX from $43.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday.

CSX Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CSX opened at $34.12 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $66.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $34.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. CSX has a 12 month low of $29.03 and a 12 month high of $40.12.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The transportation company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.68 billion. CSX had a net margin of 24.52% and a return on equity of 29.11%. The business’s revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that CSX will post 1.93 EPS for the current year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. CSX’s dividend payout ratio is 26.37%.

Institutional Trading of CSX

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its stake in CSX by 149.1% during the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 17,208 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $575,000 after purchasing an additional 10,301 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 559.7% in the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 58,779 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,179,000 after buying an additional 49,869 shares during the last quarter. PFG Advisors boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 18,880 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $700,000 after buying an additional 387 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 597,426 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $22,146,000 after buying an additional 23,938 shares during the last quarter. Finally, William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CSX in the 2nd quarter worth $867,000. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.