CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) Shares Purchased by Townsquare Capital LLC

Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 10.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 244,530 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 23,520 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC’s holdings in CSX were worth $7,891,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of CSX in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in CSX in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its stake in CSX by 205.7% during the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 1,070 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 720 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in CSX by 216.2% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,091 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 746 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of CSX during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

CSX Trading Up 0.7 %

CSX stock opened at $28.01 on Friday. CSX Co. has a 12-month low of $26.22 and a 12-month high of $37.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.79 billion, a PE ratio of 15.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.72.

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

CSX Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. CSX’s payout ratio is presently 29.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on CSX shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Loop Capital lowered CSX from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $40.00 to $34.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays dropped their price target on CSX from $38.00 to $35.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on CSX from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 target price on shares of CSX in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.70.

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.