CSX Corporation $CSX Stock Acquired by ProShare Advisors LLC

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors increased its CSX stake by 6% in the third quarter, acquiring 120,646 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 2.14 million shares valued at approximately $99.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 73.57% of CSX.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.20; recent targets range from $52 to $55.
• CSX reported quarterly EPS of $0.57, beating estimates by $0.04, while revenue rose 12% year over year to $4.02 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, representing a 1.1% annualized yield.

ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,139,175 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 120,646 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned 0.12% of CSX worth $99,493,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CSX. Archer Investment Corp bought a new position in shares of CSX in the second quarter worth about $26,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of CSX during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CSX during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CSX during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its stake in shares of CSX by 58.0% during the second quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 681 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.57% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on CSX shares. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $52.00 price objective (up from $49.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Evercore set a $53.00 price objective on CSX in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $54.00 price objective (up from $53.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $54.00 target price (up from $53.00) on shares of CSX in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $55.00 target price on CSX in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $52.20.

CSX Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CSX opened at $51.99 on Monday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $48.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.51. CSX Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $33.63 and a fifty-two week high of $53.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The transportation company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.04. CSX had a net margin of 23.97% and a return on equity of 25.94%. The firm had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.96 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.44 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that CSX Corporation will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

CSX Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 30th will be given a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 30th. CSX's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.02%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John Zillmer sold 19,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.24, for a total value of $999,180.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 334,214 shares in the company, valued at $17,125,125.36. This trade represents a 5.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

CSX Company Profile

CSX Corporation is a transportation company whose primary business is freight railroading through its CSX Transportation subsidiary. The company operates an extensive rail network across the eastern United States, serving major industrial centers, population hubs, ports and distribution markets.

CSX transports a broad range of products, including chemicals, agricultural and food products, forest products, minerals, metals, automotive goods and other manufactured merchandise. Its services also include intermodal transportation, which combines rail service with trucks and containers, as well as the movement of coal and other bulk commodities.

The company traces its roots to the formation of CSX Corporation in 1980 through the merger of Chessie System and Seaboard Coast Line Industries.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CSX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.