Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Trims Stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 102,940 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 8,754 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in CSX were worth $3,322,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of CSX in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its position in shares of CSX by 205.7% in the 4th quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 1,070 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 720 shares during the period. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of CSX in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in CSX in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

CSX Price Performance

NASDAQ CSX opened at $29.98 on Friday. CSX Co. has a 12 month low of $28.98 and a 12 month high of $38.03. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $56.80 billion, a PE ratio of 16.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.25. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.39.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last posted its quarterly 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that CSX Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.13 dividend. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. CSX’s payout ratio is 29.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on CSX from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on CSX in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $34.00 target price for the company. Loop Capital downgraded CSX from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $40.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of CSX from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CSX currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.