CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• CSX Corporation has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from 22 ratings firms, with 15 buy ratings and an average price target of $37.00.
• Institutional investors now hold 73.57% of CSX's stock, with notable increases in holdings from firms like Brighton Jones LLC and Wellington Management Group LLP in the fourth quarter.
• CSX has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.13 per share, representing a 1.5% dividend yield, with the payout ratio standing at 32.10%.

CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-two ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fifteen have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $37.00.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on CSX from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $36.00 price objective (up previously from $33.00) on shares of CSX in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of CSX in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. TD Cowen upgraded CSX from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $32.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on CSX from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CSX

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of CSX by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 20,856,567 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $673,025,000 after buying an additional 9,863,587 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CSX in the first quarter valued at about $182,550,000. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI acquired a new stake in shares of CSX in the fourth quarter valued at about $178,259,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of CSX by 21.6% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 28,383,830 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $835,336,000 after buying an additional 5,033,743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of CSX by 1,283.9% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,190,452 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $123,786,000 after buying an additional 3,887,644 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CSX Price Performance

CSX stock traded down $0.45 on Friday, reaching $34.98. 3,142,590 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,891,140. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $33.56 and a 200-day moving average of $31.45. CSX has a twelve month low of $26.22 and a twelve month high of $37.10. The firm has a market cap of $65.22 billion, a PE ratio of 21.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.02. CSX had a return on equity of 25.48% and a net margin of 21.92%. The firm had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. CSX's quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that CSX will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. CSX's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.10%.

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.