CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Price Target Raised to $44.00

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) had its price target hoisted by Citigroup from $42.00 to $44.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on CSX. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on CSX from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on CSX from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of CSX from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Stephens cut their price target on shares of CSX from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.78.

CSX Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of CSX opened at $35.63 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $34.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. CSX has a 12-month low of $30.86 and a 12-month high of $40.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.19.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The transportation company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). CSX had a net margin of 24.77% and a return on equity of 28.92%. The business had revenue of $3.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.42 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that CSX will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. CSX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.81%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CSX

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CSX. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise increased its stake in shares of CSX by 149.1% in the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 17,208 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 10,301 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in CSX by 559.7% in the first quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 58,779 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,179,000 after purchasing an additional 49,869 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in CSX by 20.8% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 467,399 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $16,139,000 after purchasing an additional 80,423 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of CSX by 3.4% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,348,543 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $81,095,000 after purchasing an additional 77,488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings 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 valued at $22,146,000 after buying an additional 23,938 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

CSX Company Profile

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.