CSX Corporation $CSX Shares Newly Bought by Sanders Morris Harris LLC

Key Points

• Sanders Morris Harris LLC acquired 22,500 CSX shares worth approximately $1.05 million in the third quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 73.57% of the railroad operator.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with CSX receiving a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target near $51, above its reported trading price of $48.28.
• Upcoming earnings could benefit from merchandise, intermodal and coal revenue growth, but labor costs, network disruptions, an operations leadership transition and a recent derailment pose risks to execution and margins.

Sanders Morris Harris LLC acquired a new position in CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 22,500 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $1,046,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in CSX by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $149,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its stake in CSX by 58.0% in the 2nd quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 681 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. boosted its stake in CSX by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 5,208 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $242,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust grew its holdings in CSX by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 69,023 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $3,281,000 after buying an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in CSX by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 18,038 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $874,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.57% of the company's stock.

CSX News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting CSX this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect third-quarter results to benefit from strength in merchandise, intermodal and coal revenue. However, labor costs and rail-network disruptions could limit margin expansion. CSX Gears Up to Report Q3 Earnings: What's in the Cards?
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains generally constructive, with 26 analysts cited at an average target of $51.09 and TD Cowen setting a $54 target, both above the current trading level. Analyst targets for CSX TD Cowen target for CSX
• Neutral Sentiment: CSX is preparing to report quarterly results, with Wall Street expecting year-over-year earnings growth. Early previews nevertheless suggest the company may not have the typical combination of positive earnings revisions and surprise factors needed for a clear earnings beat. CSX earnings expectations
• Neutral Sentiment: Options-market activity is drawing investor attention, indicating the potential for a larger move around earnings but not establishing a clear direction. CSX options-market activity
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Operating Officer Mike Cory is retiring as CSX begins an operations leadership transition. The change could raise near-term concerns about execution, service reliability and the company’s ability to address network bottlenecks. CSX COO Michael Cory retires
• Negative Sentiment: A CSX train-car derailment near Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland, disrupted rail traffic and caused expected MARC delays. Although the financial impact is not yet clear, the incident adds regulatory, service and reputational risk. CSX train derailment near Rockville

Insider Buying and Selling at CSX

In other CSX news, CAO Angela C. Williams sold 30,000 shares of CSX stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.29, for a total value of $1,598,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 10,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at $556,187.73. This trade represents a 74.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Michael S. Burns sold 13,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.68, for a total transaction of $684,840.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 59,643 shares in the company, valued at $3,141,993.24. This represents a 17.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on CSX. Argus set a $56.00 target price on shares of CSX in a report on Friday, July 31st. Truist Financial set a $46.00 target price on shares of CSX in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of CSX from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Citizens Jmp began coverage on shares of CSX in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $54.00 price target (up from $48.00) on shares of CSX in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CSX has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $51.06.

CSX Price Performance

CSX stock traded up $0.52 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $48.28. 8,813,269 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,420,828. The stock has a market cap of $89.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.91, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.21. The stock's fifty day moving average is $48.85 and its 200-day moving average is $47.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. CSX Corporation has a 12 month low of $33.63 and a 12 month high of $53.60.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.54 earnings per share (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 the consensus estimate of $3.89 billion. CSX had a return on equity of 24.98% and a net margin of 22.21%. The company's revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.44 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CSX Corporation will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 30th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 30th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. CSX's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.37%.

About CSX

CSX Corporation NASDAQ: CSX is a transportation company that provides rail-based freight services through its principal subsidiary, CSX Transportation. The company moves a broad range of products, including agricultural and food products, chemicals, minerals, forest products, metals, automotive shipments, and consumer goods.

CSX also provides intermodal transportation, connecting rail shipments with trucks, ports, and distribution facilities. Its network serves the eastern United States and reaches parts of Canada, linking major industrial regions, population centers, manufacturing locations, and Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports.

CSX traces its history to the 1980 merger of Chessie System and Seaboard Coast Line Industries.

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