Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Reduces Stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. cut its holdings in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 48,535 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in CSX were worth $1,566,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CSX. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 467,399 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $16,139,000 after acquiring an additional 80,423 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co boosted its position in shares of CSX by 180.7% during the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 72,197 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,330,000 after purchasing an additional 46,473 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in CSX in the fourth quarter worth $1,084,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in CSX by 0.7% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 3,374,499 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $116,521,000 after purchasing an additional 24,430 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carnegie Investment Counsel lifted its position in CSX by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 612,051 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $19,751,000 after buying an additional 8,474 shares during the period. 73.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CSX Stock Performance

Shares of CSX stock opened at $32.59 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $32.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.84. CSX Co. has a 52 week low of $31.43 and a 52 week high of $40.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.23.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.02). CSX had a return on equity of 28.15% and a net margin of 23.95%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that CSX Co. will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CSX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of CSX from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $37.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on CSX from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on CSX from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.16.

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.