Bank of New York Mellon Corp Buys 6,730,316 Shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 40.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,350,087 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,730,316 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in CSX were worth $753,507,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Diversified Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 180.7% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 72,197 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,330,000 after purchasing an additional 46,473 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in CSX in the fourth quarter valued at $1,084,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in CSX by 0.7% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 3,374,499 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $116,521,000 after acquiring an additional 24,430 shares during the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel grew its holdings in CSX by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 612,051 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $19,751,000 after acquiring an additional 8,474 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of CSX by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,348,543 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $81,095,000 after acquiring an additional 77,488 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CSX Stock Up 0.9 %

CSX stock opened at $32.09 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.88 billion, a PE ratio of 17.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. CSX Co. has a twelve month low of $31.43 and a twelve month high of $38.70. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $32.59 and its 200-day moving average is $33.74.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.02). CSX had a net margin of 23.95% and a return on equity of 28.15%. Sell-side analysts expect that CSX Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This is a boost from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. CSX’s payout ratio is 29.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CSX shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on CSX from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of CSX from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $37.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 target price on shares of CSX in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $38.00 price target on shares of CSX in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.16.

CSX Company Profile

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.