Donaldson Capital Management LLC Lowers Stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Donaldson Capital Management LLC reduced its position in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 52,555 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 3,672 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC’s holdings in CSX were worth $1,696,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Diversified Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 180.7% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 72,197 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,330,000 after acquiring an additional 46,473 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter worth about $1,084,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 3,374,499 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $116,521,000 after acquiring an additional 24,430 shares in the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 612,051 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $19,751,000 after acquiring an additional 8,474 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 653,025 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $22,549,000 after acquiring an additional 41,547 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CSX Stock Performance

CSX stock opened at $30.65 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $33.61. CSX Co. has a 1-year low of $30.55 and a 1-year high of $38.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market cap of $58.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.25.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.42 earnings per share 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%. On average, analysts expect that CSX Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This is a boost from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. CSX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of CSX from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price target on shares of CSX in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of CSX from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.00.

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.