Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Purchases 30,227 Shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 15.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 222,661 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 30,227 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in CSX were worth $7,185,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CSX. Diversified Trust Co raised its position in CSX by 180.7% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of CSX during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,084,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of CSX by 0.7% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 3,374,499 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $116,521,000 after acquiring an additional 24,430 shares in the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel lifted its stake in CSX by 1.4% in the fourth 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 during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in CSX by 3.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,348,543 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $81,095,000 after acquiring an additional 77,488 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CSX Price Performance

CSX opened at $32.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $61.73 billion, a PE ratio of 17.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $32.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.71. CSX Co. has a 1 year low of $31.43 and a 1 year high of $38.61. 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 (NASDAQ:CSX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.42 earnings per share (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%. Sell-side analysts predict that CSX Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. CSX’s payout ratio is presently 29.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on CSX. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of CSX from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $37.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. 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. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of CSX in a report on Monday, January 27th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $37.00 target price (down previously from $38.00) on shares of CSX in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, CSX currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.