Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 77,488 Shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 3.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,348,543 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 77,488 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of CSX worth $81,095,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its stake in CSX by 177.8% during the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 750 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of CSX during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of CSX during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of CSX in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of CSX by 348.5% in the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CSX Stock Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ:CSX opened at $31.85 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $61.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.20. CSX Co. has a twelve month low of $31.43 and a twelve month high of $40.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.05.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The transportation company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.68 billion. CSX had a net margin of 24.77% and a return on equity of 28.92%. CSX’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.42 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that CSX Co. will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.51%. CSX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on CSX shares. Citigroup lifted their price objective on CSX from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of CSX from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of CSX from $43.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of CSX from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of CSX from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $38.78.

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.