CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and fourteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $37.72.

Several research analysts recently commented on CSX shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of CSX from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of CSX from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a research note on Thursday. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of CSX from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CSX

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. West Tower Group LLC acquired a new stake in CSX during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in CSX during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new position in shares of CSX in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of CSX in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CSX in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CSX Price Performance

CSX stock opened at $34.34 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $67.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.91. CSX has a 1 year low of $29.03 and a 1 year high of $40.12. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $36.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $34.35.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The transportation company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.01. CSX had a net margin of 24.75% and a return on equity of 29.88%. The company had revenue of $3.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.48 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that CSX will post 1.97 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This is a boost from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. CSX’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.37%.

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.