CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Reaches New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• CSX hit a new 52-week high after JPMorgan raised its price target from $48 to $56 and kept an overweight rating. The stock traded as high as $49.79 during the session.
• Several other analysts have also lifted their targets on CSX, with firms like Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Barclays issuing higher price objectives. Overall, the stock carries a Moderate Buy consensus with 16 Buy ratings.
• CSX recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.43, topping estimates, and continues to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, or $0.56 annually. However, insiders have been selling shares, including the CFO and a director.

CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $48.00 to $56.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. CSX traded as high as $49.79 and last traded at $49.5630, with a volume of 4675 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $49.41.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $53.00 price objective (up from $46.00) on shares of CSX in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on CSX from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. New Street Research set a $49.00 target price on shares of CSX in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of CSX from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $55.00 price target (up from $47.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CSX currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $48.52.

Insider Buying and Selling at CSX

In other CSX news, CFO Kevin S. Boone sold 136,708 shares of CSX stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.70, for a total transaction of $6,384,263.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 208,622 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,742,647.40. This trade represents a 39.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John J. Zillmer sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.45, for a total value of $464,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 353,714 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,430,015.30. This trade represents a 2.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CSX

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of CSX by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 16,254 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $525,000 after acquiring an additional 849 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted 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 in the last quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in CSX in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in CSX by 0.8% during the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 405,828 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $13,242,000 after purchasing an additional 3,162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of CSX by 22.5% during the third quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 148,355 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $5,268,000 after purchasing an additional 27,280 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.57% of the company's stock.

CSX Trading Up 0.4%

The company has a fifty day moving average of $46.58 and a 200-day moving average of $42.21. The company has a market capitalization of $92.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.45, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.04. CSX had a net margin of 21.55% and a return on equity of 24.47%. The company had revenue of $3.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.34 EPS. CSX's revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CSX Corporation will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. CSX's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.36%.

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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