BlackRock Inc. Takes $7.66 Billion Position in CSX Corporation $CSX

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 161.1 million CSX shares worth approximately $7.66 billion, giving it an 8.69% stake. Institutional investors collectively owned 73.57% of the railroad company.
• Analysts maintained a generally positive outlook, with 18 Buy ratings, seven Holds and one Sell; the stock carried a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $51.31.
• CSX exceeded quarterly expectations with $0.54 in earnings per share and $3.94 billion in revenue, while revenue increased 10.1% year over year. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, equivalent to a 1.1% yield.

BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 161,062,005 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $7,655,277,000. BlackRock Inc. owned 8.69% of CSX at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in CSX during the 2nd quarter worth $168,000. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CSX during the 2nd quarter valued at $633,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of CSX in the 2nd quarter valued at $685,418,000. Perigon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of CSX in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,423,000. Finally, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI bought a new position in shares of CSX in the 2nd quarter worth $620,000. 73.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on CSX shares. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $54.00 target price (up from $51.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of CSX from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of CSX from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Citizens Jmp began coverage on shares of CSX in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of CSX in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $51.31.

CSX Stock Performance

Shares of CSX opened at $50.58 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $93.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.24, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.21. CSX Corporation has a twelve month low of $31.80 and a twelve month high of $53.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $49.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.83.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.89 billion. CSX had a net margin of 22.21% and a return on equity of 24.98%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.44 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that CSX Corporation will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. CSX's payout ratio is presently 32.37%.

Insider Activity at CSX

In other CSX news, SVP Michael S. Burns sold 13,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.68, for a total transaction of $684,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 59,643 shares in the company, valued at $3,141,993.24. This trade represents a 17.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kevin S. Boone sold 136,708 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.70, for a total value of $6,384,263.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 208,622 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,742,647.40. This represents a 39.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 189,708 shares of company stock worth $9,132,304 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

CSX Profile

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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