CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Shares Gap Down to $36.84

CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $36.84, but opened at $35.86. CSX shares last traded at $36.26, with a volume of 2,425,579 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CSX has been the subject of several research reports. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of CSX from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of CSX from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of CSX from $38.00 to $37.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 21st. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of CSX from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.24.

CSX Stock Up 2.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.76. The company has a market cap of $72.17 billion, a PE ratio of 20.02, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.18.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.01. CSX had a net margin of 25.35% and a return on equity of 30.52%. The company had revenue of $3.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that CSX Co. will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.30%. This is a boost from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. CSX’s payout ratio is currently 26.09%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter worth about $2,842,000. Fairman Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter worth about $55,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter worth about $1,656,000. SageView Advisory Group LLC raised its position in shares of CSX by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 7,374 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Willner & Heller LLC acquired a new position in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter worth about $266,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

About CSX

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.