Ethos Financial Group LLC Takes $47,000 Position in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Ethos Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,444 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its position in CSX by 2.5% during the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,790 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $407,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the period. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group increased its position in CSX by 1.3% during the third quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 23,990 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $830,000 after acquiring an additional 306 shares during the period. Associated Banc Corp increased its position in CSX by 0.6% during the third quarter. Associated Banc Corp now owns 55,534 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,918,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC increased its position in CSX by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 13,036 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $421,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. Finally, Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. increased its position in CSX by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 31,827 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,027,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the period. 73.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CSX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Loop Capital lowered shares of CSX from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of CSX in a research note on Friday. They set a “hold” rating and a $34.00 price objective on the stock. 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 research note on Friday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CSX presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.00.

CSX Stock Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ:CSX opened at $31.26 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 1.23. CSX Co. has a one year low of $30.55 and a one year high of $38.35. The company has a market cap of $60.28 billion, a PE ratio of 17.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 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 the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.02). CSX had a return on equity of 28.15% and a net margin of 23.95%. On average, research analysts anticipate that CSX Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. This is an increase from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. CSX’s payout ratio is 29.05%.

About CSX

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.