Associated Banc Corp Lowers Stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Associated Banc Corp cut its holdings in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX - Free Report) by 27.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,028 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 15,506 shares during the quarter. Associated Banc Corp's holdings in CSX were worth $1,292,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of CSX by 40.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 23,350,087 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $753,507,000 after purchasing an additional 6,730,316 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in CSX in the fourth quarter worth about $85,959,000. Perpetual Ltd purchased a new position in CSX in the fourth quarter worth about $83,301,000. River Road Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in CSX in the fourth quarter worth about $46,861,000. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in CSX by 10.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 15,612,862 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $539,112,000 after acquiring an additional 1,447,651 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $38.00 price target on shares of CSX in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of CSX from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on CSX from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered CSX from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $34.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $37.00.

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CSX Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CSX traded down $0.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $29.98. The stock had a trading volume of 16,060,561 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,694,192. The company has a 50 day moving average of $32.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.41. The firm has a market cap of $56.80 billion, a PE ratio of 16.75, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.25. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 28.15% and a net margin of 23.95%. Research analysts predict that CSX Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This is an increase from CSX's previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. CSX's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.05%.

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.