CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts give CSX an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from 24 brokerages (16 Buy, 8 Hold) with a mean 12‑month price target of $41.76, and several firms (Wolfe, Stephens, JPMorgan) recently raised targets while BofA trimmed theirs.
• Shares trade around $42.51 with a $79.1B market cap, P/E of 27.6 and a 52‑week range of $27.00–$43.35; CSX missed last quarter’s EPS ($0.39 vs. $0.41) and revenue was slightly below estimates, with analysts forecasting $1.83 EPS for the year.
• CSX announced a dividend increase to $0.14 quarterly (annualized $0.56, ~1.3% yield, 36.4% payout ratio), and there has been notable insider activity—the CAO sold 90,000 shares while the CEO bought 25,000 shares, with insiders selling 188,123 shares in the past three months.

Shares of CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty-four brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $41.7609.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research raised their target price on CSX from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Argus raised their target price on CSX from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Stephens raised their target price on CSX from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of CSX from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of CSX from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 12th.

CSX Price Performance

Shares of CSX opened at $42.51 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $40.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.72. The company has a market capitalization of $79.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.25. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $27.00 and a fifty-two week high of $43.35.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.02). CSX had a net margin of 20.50% and a return on equity of 23.88%. The business had revenue of $3.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.42 earnings per share. CSX's revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that CSX will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th were paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. This is a boost from CSX's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. CSX's dividend payout ratio is 36.36%.

Insider Activity at CSX

In related news, CAO Diana B. Sorfleet sold 90,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.56, for a total value of $3,740,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 165,613 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,882,876.28. This trade represents a 35.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen F. Angel purchased 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $40.27 per share, for a total transaction of $1,006,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 146,540 shares in the company, valued at $5,901,165.80. This represents a 20.57% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 188,123 shares of company stock valued at $7,454,854. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CSX. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of CSX by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 16,254 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 849 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its position in shares of CSX by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 74,410 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,428,000 after buying an additional 2,281 shares during the period. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CSX during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in shares of CSX by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 405,828 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $13,242,000 after buying an additional 3,162 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of CSX by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 46,528 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,652,000 after buying an additional 3,722 shares during the period. 73.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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