South Dakota Investment Council Increases Stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

South Dakota Investment Council boosted its holdings in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 264.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 359,629 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 260,945 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in CSX were worth $11,605,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its holdings in CSX by 177.8% in the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 750 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the period. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in CSX in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in CSX in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its holdings in CSX by 205.7% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 1,070 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 720 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC raised its holdings in CSX by 348.5% in the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CSX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of CSX from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of CSX from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of CSX from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CSX currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.16.

CSX Stock Performance

Shares of CSX opened at $32.30 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $32.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.29 billion, a PE ratio of 18.04, 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 52-week low of $31.43 and a 52-week high of $40.12.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last announced its 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CSX Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. CSX’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.82%.

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.