CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.01 EPS

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The transportation company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.01, Briefing.com reports. CSX had a return on equity of 29.88% and a net margin of 24.75%. The business had revenue of $3.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.48 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year.

CSX Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of CSX opened at $34.39 on Friday. CSX has a 1 year low of $29.03 and a 1 year high of $40.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $36.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.32. The stock has a market cap of $67.32 billion, a PE ratio of 18.90, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.18.

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 issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This is a boost from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.40%. CSX’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CSX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. StockNews.com cut CSX from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on CSX from $37.00 to $36.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Raymond James boosted their price objective on CSX from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, CSX currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.72.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CSX

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hancock Whitney Corp raised its holdings in shares of CSX by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 102,289 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,063,000 after buying an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of CSX by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 77,927 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,414,000 after buying an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of CSX by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 10,387 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $354,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of CSX by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 11,029 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $342,000 after buying an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in CSX by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 10,790 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $323,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.