CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.02 EPS

Key Points

• CSX reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.44, matching the consensus estimate.
• The company announced a dividend of $0.13 per share, set to be paid on December 15th, representing an annualized yield of 1.4%.
• Wall Street analysts generally maintain a positive outlook, with an average target price of $38.39 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) released its earnings results on Thursday. The transportation company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.02, Zacks reports. CSX had a return on equity of 25.48% and a net margin of 21.92%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year.

CSX Stock Performance

Shares of CSX traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $35.99. The stock had a trading volume of 19,766,527 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,778,898. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $34.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.32. CSX has a fifty-two week low of $26.22 and a fifty-two week high of $37.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.22, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.77.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 28th. CSX's payout ratio is 32.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on CSX shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded CSX from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $37.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on CSX from $41.00 to $40.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of CSX from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of CSX from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Stephens lifted their target price on CSX from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $38.39.

Institutional Trading of CSX

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CSX. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in shares of CSX during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in CSX by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 16,254 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $525,000 after purchasing an additional 849 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S grew its position in shares of CSX by 3.2% in the second quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 74,410 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,428,000 after purchasing an additional 2,281 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors grew its position in shares of CSX by 0.8% in 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 during the period. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.