CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) Shares Bought by Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 32.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 31,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,600 shares during the period. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in CSX were worth $1,000,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CSX. Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of CSX by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 33,119 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,144,000 after purchasing an additional 3,402 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 282,471 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,754,000 after acquiring an additional 13,299 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 36,560 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,262,000 after acquiring an additional 861 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 41,300 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,427,000 after acquiring an additional 1,423 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 55,715 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,924,000 after acquiring an additional 3,395 shares during the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CSX. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on CSX from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on CSX in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $34.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $37.00 target price (down previously from $38.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised CSX from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $37.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CSX presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.00.

CSX Price Performance

Shares of CSX opened at $30.07 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $56.97 billion, a PE ratio of 16.80, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $32.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 0.86. CSX Co. has a twelve month low of $28.98 and a twelve month high of $38.03.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, research analysts expect that CSX Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. CSX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.05%.

CSX 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.