CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Reaches New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) reached a new 52-week high on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $48.00 to $56.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. CSX traded as high as $49.79 and last traded at $49.5630, with a volume of 4675 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $49.41.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. TD Cowen raised their price target on CSX from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded CSX from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $53.00 price target (up from $51.00) on shares of CSX in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on CSX from $45.50 to $47.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Evercore set a $47.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.52.

Insider Buying and Selling at CSX

In related news, CFO Kevin S. Boone sold 136,708 shares of the company’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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director John J. Zillmer sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.45, for a total value of $464,500.00. Following the sale, the director owned 353,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,430,015.30. This trade represents a 2.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CSX. Cohen & Steers Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 8,282,107 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $300,226,000 after buying an additional 98,977 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in CSX by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 423,312 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $15,345,000 after acquiring an additional 18,025 shares during the last quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY grew its stake in CSX by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 238,817 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,803,000 after acquiring an additional 15,310 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC raised its holdings in CSX by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 189,288 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $6,862,000 after acquiring an additional 4,476 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinebridge Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter worth $5,979,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

CSX Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.21. The firm has a market cap of $92.15 billion, a PE ratio of 30.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.50 billion. CSX had a net margin of 21.55% and a return on equity of 24.47%. CSX’s revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that CSX Corporation will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. CSX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.36%.

About CSX

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.