CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Shares of CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $43.35 and last traded at $43.17, with a volume of 11788065 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.69.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CSX has been the topic of several research reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price target on shares of CSX from $39.00 to $42.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of CSX from $43.00 to $41.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on CSX from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on CSX from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on CSX from $42.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $39.77.

CSX Price Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.81.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.02). CSX had a return on equity of 23.88% and a net margin of 20.50%.The company had revenue of $3.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.42 earnings per share. CSX’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that CSX Corporation will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. CSX’s payout ratio is currently 36.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CSX

In related news, CAO Diana B. Sorfleet sold 90,000 shares of CSX stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.56, for a total transaction of $3,740,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 165,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,882,876.28. This trade represents a 35.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Stephen Fortune sold 31,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.65, for a total transaction of $1,215,774.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 82,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,170,614.10. The trade was a 27.72% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 188,123 shares of company stock valued at $7,454,854. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CSX

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Syon Capital LLC increased its position in shares of CSX by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 28,316 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,026,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in CSX by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,757 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in CSX by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,324 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares during the period. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in CSX by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC now owns 13,048 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares during the period. Finally, Walled Lake Planning & Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in CSX by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Walled Lake Planning & Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,235 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

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.