Equitable Holdings Inc. Makes New Investment in CSX Corporation $CSX

Equitable Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 52,617 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,501,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Centaurus Financial Inc. bought a new position in CSX in the second quarter worth $368,000. Brasada Capital Management LP bought a new stake in CSX in the 2nd quarter valued at $998,000. Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of CSX in the 2nd quarter valued at $401,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of CSX during the 2nd quarter worth about $19,042,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of CSX during the 2nd quarter worth about $37,738,000. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at CSX

In related news, CAO Angela C. Williams sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.29, for a total value of $1,598,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 10,437 shares in the company, valued at $556,187.73. This trade represents a 74.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevin S. Boone sold 136,708 shares of CSX stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.70, for a total value of $6,384,263.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 208,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,742,647.40. The trade was a 39.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 189,708 shares of company stock worth $9,132,304. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CSX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $54.00 target price (up from $48.00) on shares of CSX in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $56.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Citizens Jmp started coverage on CSX in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $32.00 target price on CSX and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on CSX from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CSX currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.31.

CSX Trading Down 0.5%

CSX opened at $51.28 on Friday. CSX Corporation has a 1-year low of $31.80 and a 1-year high of $53.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.99 billion, a PE ratio of 29.64, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $49.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.57.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.02. CSX had a net margin of 22.21% and a return on equity of 24.98%. The business had revenue of $3.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.44 earnings per share. CSX’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that CSX Corporation will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CSX Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. CSX’s payout ratio is presently 32.37%.

About CSX

CSX Corporation is a leading North American transportation company that provides rail-based freight services and supply-chain solutions. Its operating subsidiary, CSX Transportation, moves a wide range of goods for customers across multiple industries, using a combination of long-haul rail service, intermodal operations and terminal and yard services. The company focuses on delivering efficient, reliable freight transportation between major production centers, consumption markets and port gateways.

CSX’s freight portfolio includes intermodal containers and trailers, bulk commodities, industrial products and specialized unit trains.