McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. Increases Stock Position in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 23.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,919 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,861 shares during the quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in CSX were worth $344,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Value Partners Investments Inc. acquired a new position in CSX in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,172,000. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of CSX by 3.1% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 24,340,514 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $748,471,000 after buying an additional 739,411 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in CSX by 3,241.9% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 235,304 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,158,000 after acquiring an additional 228,263 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in CSX by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 723,344 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $25,078,000 after acquiring an additional 34,730 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in CSX in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,279,000. 73.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CSX. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a report on Thursday, April 18th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on CSX from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of CSX from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of CSX from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price target on shares of CSX from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CSX presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $38.00.

CSX Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of CSX traded up $0.36 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $34.03. 11,988,006 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,391,135. CSX Co. has a 1-year low of $29.03 and a 1-year high of $40.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $36.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The company has a market cap of $66.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.18.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The transportation company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.01. CSX had a net margin of 24.75% and a return on equity of 29.58%. The company had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that CSX Co. will post 1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 29th were given 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 yield of 1.41%. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. CSX’s payout ratio is currently 26.37%.

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.