Norges Bank Makes New $780.19 Million Investment in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Norges Bank bought a new stake in CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 24,177,080 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $780,194,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in CSX by 40.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 23,350,087 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $753,507,000 after buying an additional 6,730,316 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its position in shares of CSX by 471.9% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 6,748,661 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $217,808,000 after purchasing an additional 5,568,624 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in CSX in the 4th quarter valued at $85,959,000. Perpetual Ltd purchased a new position in CSX in the 4th quarter valued at $83,301,000. Finally, Sound Shore Management Inc. CT acquired a new stake in CSX during the 4th quarter worth $67,825,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.57% of the company’s stock.

CSX Stock Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:CSX opened at $29.92 on Friday. CSX Co. has a 52 week low of $28.98 and a 52 week high of $37.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $31.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.25.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.02). CSX had a net margin of 23.95% and a return on equity of 28.15%. Research analysts anticipate that CSX Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. This is a boost from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. CSX’s payout ratio is 29.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of CSX from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $37.00 target price (down from $38.00) on shares of CSX in a report on Friday, January 24th. Loop Capital cut CSX from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $40.00 to $34.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays lowered their price objective on CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on CSX from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $36.75.

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.